


The Princess and the Dragon

by charliepoet13



Category: Fairy Tail
Genre: Celestial spirits are dragons, Dragon AU, Dragon Loke, Fairytail has arrived!, Fluff, Lucy's dad is a bit of a dick, This is not a drill folks, Two idiots trying to live together, angst is here folks, has gained a plot, tags to be changed as the story goes on, this is pre-redemption, was meant to be plotless but here we are
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-09-10
Updated: 2020-09-10
Packaged: 2020-10-13 22:43:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 18
Words: 57,432
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20590322
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/charliepoet13/pseuds/charliepoet13
Summary: Once upon a time, there was a runaway princess that wanted not a prince, but a life lived safely under the watchful eye of a dragon.





	1. Off on the wrong foot

**Author's Note:**

> Ok this chapter is a direct continuation of a prompt I did for [lolu week](https://archiveofourown.org/works/20150083/chapters/47977567#workskin) . This story is going to follow them getting to know each other and just trying to get along.

They landed on the hard cave floor with a loud thud, dust blowing up from under his clawed feet. So this was his home, and her new one she supposed. For how long she wasn’t certain, she wouldn’t abuse his hospitality, but for now she could relax. He lowered his claw to the ground, allowing her to slowly slide off, before retracting it, allowing him to stand on all fours.

Looking up at him, she realised he was only just small enough to fit, if he grew even the slightest bit bigger his head would be rubbing against the roof of the cave. She chuckled slightly at the image, whether from nerves or everything finally hitting her she wasn’t sure, but suddenly the whole thing struck her as funny. Her chuckling devolved into full blown laughter, hand on her stomach as she bent over from it, tears streaming down her face. Loke tilted his head at her in silent confusion, so she quickly waved him off.

“I’m ok, I promise.I think it’s all just hit me what’s going on. I mean, I ran away from home, saved a dragon, then was saved myself by that dragon! It’s a bit crazy don’t you think?”

He seemed to consider it, head raised slightly in thought, before a small rumble vibrated from him. It seemed non-committal, almost like a verbal shrug, so she quickly wiped at her eyes, trying to reign in her emotions. Her attention was caught at the large space they were now in, it was littered with trash, uneaten food and random objects. Everything from chairs and tables to half ripped rugs and blankets. Several books littered the floor and she swore she saw an old bed stashed away to the side. She raised an eyebrow as she looked up at him.

“I thought dragons collected treasure? This is trashier than I was expecting”

He huffed, offended, and she thought maybe she had gone too far when he turned away from her, walking to the cave entrance. She quickly sped after him, intent on apologising, when he leaned out of the cave entrance, looking down at the ground below them. Intrigued, her curiosity got the better of her. She held tight to his leg as she looked over, a sudden feeling of vertigo claiming her, though if he noticed he didn’t make any noise to show he was bothered by it.

There was a large pile of discarded trash at the bottom of the mountain, various objects stuck in bushes or on ledges on the roll down. What a long way down it was, looking at it from up here, she realised how high up they were, she was probably safe here, right? She took in all the bits of rubbish thrown down the mountain, well, while it was trash to Loke, there were probably a few valuable items in that heap. She vaguely wondered if there was a way to make a living here when he snorted and moved away, almost taking her with him. After quickly letting him go, she followed him back into the cave.

“So, you were organising your latest...um find then? I guess you weren’t expecting visitors...sorry”

He stopped, eyes darting to her, before looking ahead again, he nodded before moving away, deciding to leave this strange human to her own devices. She watched him go, pausing when she noticed two boulders placed in front of an entrance. Curious, she walked over, pushing against the boulders. It was no good, they were solid, too heavy for her to shift. He was almost to the back of the cave, so she quickly raised a hand, waving it at him and catching his attention. There was a loud release of air, almost like a sigh, before he turned and plodded back over to her. Well now who was being rude?! She was a guest! Still, it would do her no good to snap at a dragon. She tapped one of the boulders, she could hear something on the other side, a rushing sort of noise, and it was starting to bother her. 

“Loke, what’s behind this?”

He cringed, before frowning at the rocks, as if the had personally offended him. That just made her more curious however.

“Could you move them for me? I want to see”

The look she got in response almost made her laugh again, he clearly thought she was crazy and felt no shame in hiding it. Resigned to her whims however, he stretched out one arm, keeping as much distance away from them as he could, and gently pulled it to the side, keeping it away from her. She belatedly realised she could have been crushed and sent him a small smile in thanks. She peered in, it was a small circular space, in the middle was a small stream, funneling from a hole high up in the left, before trailing down into a hole in the right side of the cavern, going deeper into the mountain. Not that she cared about that.

“This is great! I can use this to keep clean!”

She ran over, tentatively placing a hand under the falling water. A shiver went up her spine as the water hit her skin, that was freeing! But she could get used to it, especially if only to quickly clean herself and her clothes. She frowned at the thought, removing her hand to look down at her torn skirt. She couldn’t wear this forever, perhaps there were suitable clothes in that thrown out pile? At this point she’d wear anything. She turned to ask Loke and stopped, startled, before laughing once more.

He was staring at her aghast, disgust and mortification warring on his face. For a dragon, he was quite expressive, it was hilarious. A cruel thought came to mind and with a sly smile, she plunged her hand back into the flowing water, drenching it. She then charged at Loke.

His reaction was priceless, wings flapping uselessly behind him as he scrambled backwards. She came through the entrance to the small cavern, he quickly turned, running to the back of the cave, whimpering loudly like he wasn’t some sort of giant lizard of destruction. After giving him a good run around, she paused to catch her breath. Chest heaving as she tried to laugh and breathe at the same time. He was grumbling off to the side somewhere, muttering in a language she was centuries too young to understand. He sounded indignant, which only worsened her struggle for oxygen.

Once she was finally able to calm down, leaning against the back wall for support, she finally spotted a hidden entrance, tucked away in the back corner of the cave. Determined to see everything she walked over, her jaw dropping once she took in what was in this hidden nook. It was a large round room, claw marks all along the side suggested it had been dug out to be made bigger, but that wasn’t the impressive bit. Stacked from the floor to the ceiling was shining silver and gold. Jewellery, cutlery, coins, weapons, everything, as long as it was those two colours, was here. She noticed with some fascination that some objects had holes where gems clearly used to be, were they picked out? Not important enough? She bet the amount rare gems tossed away by this dragon would make somebody out there cry. She stepped in, drawn in by it all, reaching out to touch it-

Suddenly there was a loud growl, a rush of air as suddenly Loke was in front of her, standing between her and the large pile of treasure. There was an ugly hiss, coming up from his throat deep and threatening. It shook her to her core. His fangs bared and eyes constricted as he glared at her. His wings and tail were raised threateningly as his body curled downward, like he was ready to pounce. She froze, stunned at this sudden change in demeanour, a small voice inside her reminding her she shouldn’t be. Everyone knows dragons protected their treasure with their lives! Why would she be seen as any less of a threat? They’ve known each other for less than a day! Trying not to feel hurt, she raised her hands to soothe the snarling beast. He snapped at her so she quickly stepped back, walking backwards until she was out of the hiding place. He seemed to calm down slightly, plopping himself down to lay in front of the treasure, staring at her, through her.

She walked away, unable to stand those eyes staring accusingly at her. She was surprised to find tears streaming down her cheeks, her body shaking in fear. That’s right, he was a monster wasn’t he? He could easily turn on her at any point, regardless of whether there was any reason to or not. Fatigue hit her like a brick, weariness seeping into her bones, how could she have entertained for a moment that they could be friends? She moved to sit on the bed but froze in place, the image of his fangs flashing through her mind. What if he decided it was a treasure worthy of keeping? It was unlikely, but still. Unable to take that risk, she sat down against the stone wall and did her best to fall asleep on the hard, cold floor.

She must have somewhat succeeded because when she woke up, she was in the bed. It wasn’t much comfier than the floor, but it was definitely warmer. She shot up, scared of retribution, but was instead surprised by what she saw around her. There was an only slightly beaten up rug at the side of the bed, with a pair of worn out slippers on it. A bedside table (missing the middle drawer) was beside her, a lamp resting on it. There was no lightbulb, instead a small orb of light magic took its place. At the foot of the bed was a pile of old toys and books, worn and battered, but still salvageable. Was she dreaming? What was goi-

Loud thumps announced his arrival and she froze instinctively, leaping out of the bed, fixing the covers. She stood up as he approached, doing her best not to quiver in front of him. He stared down at her for a brief moment, before laying down, lowering his head and wings to the ground. He closed his eyes and let out a small whimper. She stood there for a hot minute, brain rebooting in an attempt to work out what was going on. It finally hit her, what she was looking at. 

“Did...Did you do this? Is this for me?”

A small nod, but he refused to open his eyes, body tense like he expected something to happen. Was this...Was he apologising? On shaking legs, she slowly walked over to him. Hesitantly, she reached out and placed a hand on his nose. He flinched, whimpering quietly, but not moving away. She frowned, confused by this reaction, she really didn’t know enough about dragons. She shrugged, gathering up her courage, despite everything inside her screaming to run, and hugged his snout. 

“It’s ok Loke, you can open your eyes, I forgive you. I shouldn’t have walked into your treasure trove, i’m sorry too”

Wide eyes opened, staring down his nose at her. He gave out a few confused murmurs before nudging her slightly, trying to lift her arm up. She was confused, until he sat up, clenching one claw into a fist before tapping his own nose. She slumped, exasperated with this silly reptile.

“I’m not going to hit you idiot. It was a misunderstanding. There’s probably going to be more, I don’t know much about dragons and i’m not sure how much you know about humans. We can't hurt each other everytime we accidentally upset each other. Come here” She beckoned to him and he cautiously placed his head back onto the ground. She hugged his snout again, enjoying his hum of happiness. “See isn’t this better?” 

His tail slowly started to wag back and forth in acceptance. Yeah this was better. They could make this work.

Everything would be fine.


	2. Food and Entertainment

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Loke helps Lucy feel more at home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Maybe because it's something new but I'm brimming with motivation for this story, maybe because it's also something silly? I don't know, but here's another chapter.

To cheer him up, he was still a little down about snapping at her, she started joking about dividing up the cave. She proposed that she got this entire main hall to herself, since that’s where her ‘bedroom’ was, while he got that tiny room of gold and silver. Loke had been quick to object, wings flapping as he grumbled. Distracting him seemed to work and they quickly made a plan. The main hall belonged to them, though Lucy can keep whatever items she likes there, the treasure room was Loke’s and the ‘bathroom’ was Lucy’s. Loke didn’t fight too hard for that room she noticed, bemused. He made a big deal of moving the two boulders away and out of the cave, like it was personally killing him to do so. Lucy had never watched such melodramatic whining and limping along in her life, but it made for good entertainment while she watched him. Now if only she had some popcorn…

Her stomach rumbled loudly, letting her hunger be known to the both of them. She flushed red, somehow embarrassed that he obviously heard her.Though, in her defence, she hadn’t eaten since yesterday lunchtime and had gone through so much since, it wasn’t hard to guess why she was running on empty. There was a deep chuckle beside her, she glared up at the grinning dragon, before an even louder rumble shook the room. He turned his head away from her, she was pretty sure if he could blush, he would be.

“You’re hungry too huh? Got any food around?” 

He spread out his wings, letting out a triumphant roar as he charged forward, jumping out of the cave and flying up into the sky. He circled once as she watched, before heading off towards a forest at the base of the mountains. Perplexed as to where he got his sudden rush of energy, she resigned herself to keeping busy while she waited. 

Some of those books had looked interesting…

She was deep inside a fantasy story when his arrival literally shook her out of it. A large gust of wind almost blowing her off her bed. She placed the book down, strolling over as he dumped a lump of meat in front of her. There was blood on his lips and claws, while he seemed overly satisfied with himself. Greedy idiot must of eaten without her, how rude.

_ Wait why did she want him to eat with her? _

She shook her head, trying to rearrange her thoughts towards something more ‘normal’, while also desperately not trying to wonder what it used to be. He beamed down at her, eyes shining as he preened, waiting for compliments. She hated to disappoint him.

“I’m sorry, you've gone through a lot of effort to bring at least part of your kill back for me, but I can't eat it raw”

He tilted his head, frowning, not quite understanding why she hadn't just dug in yet. She crossed her arms, trying to remember her books back home. She had snuck some survival books into her bookcase, had been memorising them for the point she would be living on her own. Yet, when she really needed that information, it slipped through her fingers. Perhaps there was a way to...

“Do you know if you've thrown away any pots away recently?”

He shrugged heavily, not overly happy that he hadn't been praised yet. She sighed, walking to the entrance of the cave.

“Let's go take a look then”

He let out a short whine, nodding his head towards the slab of fresh meat, still dripping onto the floor. She shuddered a little, but she had to make the best of his efforts.

“I will eat it, I just need some things first”

He let out a loud huff, body sagging with the effort, before making a point of slowly picking himself up and going over to her. Really now, he was so overdramatic.

A quick fly down (she would never get used to being on his back, feeling his large muscles move underneath her), scavenging and a successful find later, she was sitting back in the cave struggling to make a fire. A metal pot filled with water from the stream was over one small stack of wood. She was pretty sure she had it positioned the same way as in the books, it was hopefully ready to make boiled drinkable water. Next to it, the meat was skewered on a long branch, thank the stars for the knife she found, she hoped the quick dip in the stream was good enough to clean it. The branch was held up by two sets of branches in the shape of crosses on each side, tied flimsily together by small strands of string she had found. Honestly the whole thing looked ready to fall apart, but it was the best she could do.

Nothing was going to cook if she couldn't make a fire, but the books made rubbing sticks together sound easier than what she was finding it. Not helping matters, was Loke laying down beside her, watching her with a clear interest.

“Ya know, you can breathe fire right? Mind helping me out here?”

She didn’t mean to snap at him, but her hunger was starting to gnaw at her, putting her into a foul mood. He stared blankly at her for a moment, blinking slowly, before opening his mouth ever so slightly. A ball of light appeared in his mouth, he blew softly and it floated about, like a small fairy. It floated around, lighting up the cave and causing their shadows to dance along the walls, before it finally fizzled out, leaving the room slightly darker and colder. She stared at where it disappeared in quiet awe, it had been such a friendly light, not something she had expected from a dragon. A sudden thought hit her and she turned her head to face her bed.

“The light in my lamp, that's your power isn't it?” He nodded slowly, eyes closing as he did so. “Thank you, it was really thoughtful of you”

His tail dragged across the ground behind him in a slow motion as he made a happy...chirp? Could dragons chirp? Regardless, he seemed pleased to finally be receiving some kind words. He laid his head down on his claws, huge expressive eyes staring at her. Absently, she walked over to pet his snout.

“Can you focus that light? Turn it into a beam?” A light rumble, she hoped was an affirmative, she pointed to the twigs under the pot and meat. “Could you light them for me?”

He stood on all fours, gently nudging her backwards with a clawed hand. He lowered his head, focusing on the twigs, eyes twitching slightly as he seemed to judge how much power to actually use. His claws taped the ground before finally he once more slightly opened his mouth. A small ball of light appeared before a thin beam of light shot out and hit under the pot. In moments the wood was aflame, the fire licking the underside of the pot and heating the water. He turned his aim a bit to the left and fire sprung out under the meat, slowly starting to cook it. He closed his mouth, releasing his power and stood up straight again. 

She beamed as she ran to her now cooking dinner starting to turn the meat over.

“Thanks Loke! Food will be ready in no time now”

He didn’t quite understand why she was happy, but he sat down beside her nonetheless, enjoying watching her at work.

In the end, the meat came out a bit overcooked, blackened at the edges, tasting a little like charcoal, but she greedily ate it all down, Loke pleased that she finally ate his catch. She was proud of herself, for her first meal cooked on her own, she didn't do too amazingly badly, she would only get better! Or so she hoped.

A week passed surprisingly quickly. The day after her kinda successful cooking attempt, her and Loke had gone trash diving, trying to find utensils and furniture to make her life a little easier. She came back with dirty cutlery, a table to eat on and a wooden chair. It was a start.

Thankfully Loke was bringing different animals back, or her cooking was so unpredictable it tasted different each time, so eating hadn't gotten monotonous yet. What had gotten a bit boring was finding things to do while Loke was hunting or sleeping. The dragon was great company otherwise and seemed happy to listen to her rants of how unfair her father treated her, or how she stubbed her toe on some rock, or even just listening to her dreams about being a writer. As long as she was talking, he seemed fascinated, sometimes not even blinking so he could watch her intently.

She groaned as she flopped back onto her bed. It was weird to not see conversations with a dragon as not exciting wasn’t it? But Loke never spoke back, sure he communicated through sounds and gestures, but that wasn't the same. Actually...why didn't he speak? There was a story there somewhere. As if he could read her thoughts his head suddenly came into view. He was sat by her bed, leaning over to face her. He let out a quiet mumble, nudging her slightly with his snout. She chuckled to herself as she sat up, patting him before he moved back.

“I'm ok Loke, just trying to think of things to do while you're gone. At home I had so much I could do or study. I guess it's the one thing I miss about that place”

A quiet pathetic noise escaping from him, she was surprised to find his eyes looked watery, like he was going to cry. She back peddled trying to work out what she had done to upset him.

“I’m not saying I don’t like it here, because I do! I don’t want to leave, I just want more to do. I had a lot to focus on back home and I just want to bring that here.”

There, that explained it right? She needed to be up and about, ready and doing things, otherwise she got stressed from the inaction and boredom. He seemed to get over his sadness pretty quickly, instead somehow managing to look thoughtful. He hummed deeply to himself, plodding off away from her. So focused on whatever it was he was thinking of, he walked right into the wall, he let out a roar of frustration before running into his little treasure hideout, clearly wanting some time alone. She sighed and shook her head, she just didn’t understand him sometimes.

In the middle of the night she woke blearily to the sound of air moving around her. Focusing on the noise, she could hear Loke sniffing something. Based on the warm air around her, her sleep addled brain was able to put together belatedly that he had been sniffing her. Before she could react, there was a strong breeze flowing through the cave, a sure sign of him flapping his wings. What was he doing? A late night flight? She yawned, pulling her blanket to her, she could ask him in the morning, right now she needed to sleep.

She woke up with a stretch, not really ready to face the day, but submitting herself to it anyway. Getting out of bed, she blinked tiredly as she looked around, frowning when she somehow didn’t spot a giant reptile. She rubbed her eyes, wiping away the sleep and dust, but still didn’t see him. Was he still out flying? She moved away from her bed, looking out onto the horizon, the sun was kinda low she supposed. He would be back soon probably, might as well tidy up while she waited for him. 

The sun was midway through the sky and she was starting to panic a little. He had never been gone this long before, what if he was in trouble? Panic started to thrum inside her, making her heart beat loudly in her ears. How would sheever know if he was laying hurt somewhere? If something had gone wrong somehow and he was captured again? She started to pace, arguing with herself if she should brave it down the mountain or at least wait a little bit longer. She was leaning more and more toward the former when she heard it. A loud roar of triumph. 

She ran, almost off the edge in her haste, but when she looked up she saw him. Flying back with a large cloth in his two front claws, it seemed to be filled with something, but she really didn’t care. Relief carried her up high, laughter bubbling out of her as he landed, placing his goodies in front of him. She ignored the unravelling cloth, hugging his leg instead. 

“You stupid dragon, where have you been all morning? I thought you were hurt!”

He nuzzled her the best he could, before nudging her towards the cloth. She finally looked to see what was so important and let out a small gasp.

In the pile, was her bed, her wardrobe and her bookcase, the books were loose, jostled out from the bookcase by the trip back, but that was easily sorted. She jumped onto her bed, relishing in the softness of a quality mattress. She allowed herself to sink into it for a moment, before watching as he stood the wardrobe up, moving it next to her other things. Finally, a change of clothes, even if not everything in there was appropriate for this type of setting. He moved the bookcase next, moaning when he noticed all the books.

“Don’t worry I'll tidy them. Thank you so much for all of this, did you have to break into my room? I mean you’re a bit big to just walk in”

He looked down to his feet, shuffling awkwardly and, to her surprise, she laughed. She could imagine the giant hole in her room, her stuff suddenly missing, wouldn’t that cause a stir?

“Thank you again Loke....you did this to help me settle in didn’t you ...oh you’re such a big softie. How can I ever-”

A lightbulb went off in her brain as she got an amazing idea. She ran to her wardrobe, opening it up and hoping it was still there. She pushed back her clothes and almost yelled in joy when she saw her jewellery box stashed away. She pulled out the small white box. The corners and latch were decorated with gold and it caught Loke’s interest. He watched her as she opened it, looking for a certain object.

“Ah here it is!”

She pulled out a small golden ring, the metal bending into a heart shape at the top. She put it into a small ring box to keep it safe, before holding it up for his inspection.

“Here, it was a gift from a relative, but I never wore it. Perhaps you would like to add it to your collection?”

A surprised chitter passed by his lips as he held out a claw for her. She gently placed it into his hand and he brought it up closer so he could properly examine it. After a moment he let out a low rumble that reminded her of the purr of a cat. He grinned, eyes closing slightly in a smile, before quickly scurrying off, desperate to find a good place for the ring. She was touched, happy to watch him go, when she finally noticed something red under his wing. Under closer inspection she let out a yell.

“Loke, you’re bleeding!”

She pointed at his side, not feeling incredibly helpful. There were cuts down his side, and some on his legs now that she was paying attention, didn’t that hurt? He just waved one wing at her, as if waving the situation away, but she couldn’t help but worry. Of course they wouldn’t have just let him fly off with this stuff, they would have attacked him, defended her old home. She grit her teeth, annoyed with how foolish she had been. 

He kept on walking away and she just hoped he’d be ok.


	3. Doing your best to help another.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lucy decides she can't just sit back and watch Loke suffer through his wounds.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I can not claim to be an expert in either mountain climbing or wild medicines, so if something is majorly wrong please tell me.

It had been a day since he had brought her things back for her, and he was still limping. She’d refused to let him leave to hunt, telling him to rest up today, he’d grumbled but ultimately given in. She wasn’t sure if he was just respecting her concern, but she appreciated it. He had slumped down against a wall, closed his eyes, and hadn’t woken up since. 

She was currently flipping through one of her books, she was pretty sure there was mention of medicine in one of them somewhere...Aha! She gleefully stopped at a two page spread of herbal medicines and treatments. Maybe she could find them in the forest? It was an awfully long way down though, one slip and she could-

She shook her head, not wanting to think about the long fall. Her eyes landed on the slumbering dragon, on all his cuts. Her mind supplied her with images of infection, illness, all of it her fault. She had to stop herself from gagging. No she couldn’t let him down, after he had tried so hard to make her comfortable here. She would brave it, for him.

She grabbed an old battered rucksack, it had most likely belonged to an adventurer, she absolutely did not think about how Loke had it, placing the book inside before flinging it onto her back. She didn’t have any rope, but she could tie the quilts together from her two beds, she was glad they had kept the old thing now, it was a start at least. She slowly dragged the old bed as close to the edge as she could, before tying the covers to one of the legs, making the knot as tight as she could. She tugged on it to test the knot, satisfied when it didn’t come undone. She then tied the other end of the blankets around her waist, holding onto it tightly with one hand. She turned her head and looked down, gulping at the large sheer drop, before steadily climbing down. Her feet found purchase in the rock, with one hand on her makeshift rope and the other on the large wall, she made her way down. 

It seemed like she reached the end of the rope too soon, she made her way to a small ledge, where she could rest and undo the rope. She left it hanging there, it would be helpful on the climb back up she was sure. Shivering she looked down, spotting another ledge further down. Taking a deep breath, she closed her eyes and started her climb back down.

It felt like hours had passed, judging from the sun in the sky it probably had been, as she slowly made her way from ledge to ledge, catching her breath and bravery, before moving onto the next. When her feet finally made it to solid ground, she collapsed to her knees, body quivering and nerves fully broken. She had no idea how she was going to make the climb back up, but at least she was here now. A stone path led the way down the rest of the hill before finally making it to her destination. She allowed herself a ten minute breather to recover before forcing herself to stand. She slowly made her way down the path, motivated to move by the thought of a happy, healthy dragon.

It turned out that the book made finding medicinal herbs seem much easier than it was. They hid in the nooks of trees, under logs and generally in the shadows. Not to mention the deep comparison every leaf had to go through to make sure it wasn’t actually poison that looked deceptively similar. Then there was the fact that some of them seemed protected by sharp thorns, causing her to have a few scratches of her own. By the time she was certain she had a bag with healing flowers and leaves in it, she was tired, hungry and fed up. Her body hurt, her feet hurt and her stomach growled. She flipped through the pages as she made her way back home. Stopping to scavenge for, and hungrily devouring, any berries that were described as safe. It would have to do for now, something was better than nothing. As the forest was starting to recede, a familiar path coming into view, she heard it. A loud sorrowful howl filed the empty air. Startled, her head shot up to see Loke standing at the edge of the cave, leaning out as far as he could. His head was tilted as he seemed to be listening for something. Though she couldn’t see his expression from here, she could tell he probably looked depressed. She quickly waved her arms above his head, yelling as loudly as she could.

“LOKE! I’m here!”

Thankfully, a dragon’s ears are much more sensitive than a humans, he reacted immediately. Even from that distance, she could see his wings raise, his head swivelling as he looked for her. He finally spotted her, letting out a happy yelp before he crouched low, ready to jump out.

“No! Loke you’re injured! STAY!”

He paused, did he really want to hurt his legs more? She groaned as she sped up, it would take a while for her to climb that mountain, especially as she was sure it was harder going up then down. Would he be able to wait that long? As if in answer to her silent question, there was a loud crash in front of her. 

He hissed as he landed on his cut up feet, wriggling a little as the pain shot through him, before turning his gaze to her. His eyes widened in joy, tail flailing quickly behind him as he nuzzled her, chittering constantly. She patted him before gently pushing him away.

“Loke, your legs, you absolute-!” She sighed as she caught a glance of his downtrodden expression, so much for scolding him. “I’m happy to see you too you big doofus. For future reference, I'm not leaving you Loke, where could I go? You are stuck with me, I was just looking for things in the forest” 

She pointed behind her, at the tall trees that surrounded this valley and he huffed, unimpressed. He nudged her, pushing her slightly, almost whining at her. When had she become a babysitter?

“You’re hurt Loke, I figured you should stay asleep. Speaking of sleep, let’s go home ok? You still need to rest”

Making a small hum of agreement, he scooped her up in one of his claws. Before reaching over his opposite shoulder and unceremoniously dropping her onto his back, she almost complained to him about the rough treatment, but decided against it. She had already frayed his nerves enough today. He shot up into the air, before slowly gliding into the cave, not really having to give much effort. He landed softly, actually trying to be wary of his legs. He then laid down, allowing her to just slide off his back. He grunted, trying to stand, before giving up and staying down. He murmured as he lowered his head, worn out. Her heart went out to him.

“You’ve really worked yourself up haven’t you? We’re more alike than I want to admit. Still, I've got something that will help...hopefully”

She looked around for a container, really only finding the metal pot she used to cook in, she would have to clean it out later. She took some of the leaves and flowers from the bag and placed them inside the pot, ( she had grabbed everything deemed a 'healing herb' for future use) she found a thick enough branch to use that was still small and did her best to crush them. She complained as she worked, moaning about how they really needed to find a shop and buy these kind of things, he watched her with a tired politeness, eyes drooping as she spoke.

Finally she had the mixture looking like the picture in the book, or at least as close as she could get. She got a bit on her fingers before walking over to Loke. He watched her, intrigued but fighting off sleep. She slowly made her way over, making sure he could see every movement, before gently reaching out and placing a little bit on one of his scratches. He flinched, hissing lightly as he turned his head to glare at her. She moved her hand away, making eye contact with him and trying to be stern.

“I know it stings, but this will help. It will fight off infection and speed up your recovery. Though I guess we have left this a little late...I just...I just wanted to help you that’s all”

She trailed off near the end, realising finally that this was all for naught. She had wasted both her own and his time with this. Her shoulders slumped as she turned to get rid of her ‘medicine’. Would it have even helped a dragon anyway? It was helpful to humans but-

A hand reached out in front of her, stopping her in her tracks. He slowly pulled his hand back, forcing her to return to his side. He sniffed her pot of flowers, let out a small hum of surprise when he realised it was yarrow. He snorted, seemingly appeased as he nodded to his cuts. He relaxed once more, laying his head on his front claws, giving her permission to continue.

For a moment she was stunned, before she quickly got back to covering his wounds with the paste, pleased and excited to be helping him. 

She was shocked to find him relaxing under her touch, her slow and methodical rubbing, by the time she was all done, he was fast asleep. She placed the pot down, yawning and dropping down herself, ready to sneak in a quick nap after the long day she’d had.

As tired as she was, she didn’t realise she was slumped up against him, drifting off to the sound of his breathing.


	4. I prefer the name you gave me that day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lucy finds out a little more about her dragon, though he seems resistant for her to use this new information.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay for anime sounding chapter titles!

When she woke up, she had scurried away from him, doing her best not to alert him. It was too late for that though, since it seemed he had been watching her, his expression turned to hurt as she moved away, creating distance between them, which was really confusing. What was worse, however, was that she felt terrible too, like she had broken some unspoken rule and abandoned him. She had to pull herself away from him and to her bookshelf, hating every moment of it.

They hadn’t spoken since, which was getting kinda awkward, a day of silence was driving her mad. She had read several of her old books in that time sure, but she preferred their strange method of conversation. She had been here long enough she could pick up is basic meaning, as weird as it was, she didn’t want to lose that. Well, maybe she was going overboard, they were just having a bad day, they would get over it.

She sighed, picking out another book at random, bringing it to her attention and freezing slightly when she saw the cover. Stars and Galaxies spread across the book, one claiming to be about astrology. She remembered the pattern on the underside of Loke’s wings, not that she really saw it that often, and wondered if that particular pattern of stars meant anything. Frustrated that her thoughts were dragged back to him, but excited by the possibility of learning something new about him. She quickly flipped through the pages, eagerly taking in all the different constellations, until she stopped on one that looked familiar. She swore it was the one on his wings, but there was only one way to be completely certain.

She groaned to herself, she would have to break this stifling atmosphere to talk to him. How fun. She slowly got out of bed, easily spotting him. He hadn’t moved much from where he was this morning, he still looked to be pouting about it. She walked over to him, surprised to find she wasn’t the least bit frightened, rather, she was annoyed by his childish behaviour. He was a giant dragon baby she had somehow adopted, or at least that’s how he acted. She stopped in front of him, keeping eye contact with him, even when he huffed. When faced with such a scaly being, playing the middle ground was probably the best option.

“I’m sorry I left you this morning. Dragons aren’t really known to like humans sleeping on them, I thought you would be upset with me”

A sharp whine, almost sounding offended, came from him as he finally sat up, deciding to speak with her properly. He huffed again, shaking his head furiously.

“So you weren’t upset?” Another shake of the head, for some reason, she felt a warm flush on her cheeks. “Well, I guess I could sleep beside you again at some point?”

He grinned toothily at her, wings flapping in excitement. She was almost bowled over, but also reminded of why she was actually there. 

“Can I ask you a favour? Mind stretching your wings out for me? I want to take a look at them”

He stared at her for a brief moment, trying to work out her motives, before relenting and opening up his wings. She stared up in awe at the beauty she saw. A shimmering night sky framed by orange scales. The stars seem to twinkle almost, a pattern emerging on his wings. She held up the book, putting it by the constellation in her line of vision, mentally comparing the two. A victorious grin spread across her face when she realised they were a perfect match. She brought the book down to her face, reading the name of the constellation softly.

“Leo”

She'd been right! He really was Leo! So caught up in her jubilation, she almost missed his whining. She hadn’t expected the shocked reaction from Loke, eyes widening as his wings closed to fold back in at his sides, He was chatting hurriedly in that weird language again. Somehow sounding rough but also calming, like it cooled deep fears she didn’t even know or understand. Why had he reacted that way to one word...unless...it would explain why such a thing was on his wings in the first place.

“Is Leo...Is Leo your true name?”

The chittering got quieter, before he slowly, almost reluctantly, nodded. She swore he looked panicked, though she couldn’t tell why. Still, the confirmation was nice.

“Leo huh? It suits an oversized kitten such as yourself. It will take some getting used to but I don’t mind using it instead- woah!”

She fell backwards as he purposefully puffed air at her to knock her over. She groaned from where she now sat, glaring up at him, startled to find his snout hovering over her legs, his claws rested either side of her as he laid down. His eyes were constricted, frowning down at her.

“What’s your problem?! Aren’t you happy I can call you by your proper name now?”

He had the audacity to growl at her! Her! When she was just trying to be kind to him! In that brief moment, the fact he could crush her with just his head alone escaped her, angry and wanting to defend herself. 

“You’re being completely unreasonable! I’ve found your name, I can call you it now instead of some stupid name I made up on the spot. Shouldn’t you be happy Le-” His teeth bared, ready to growl at her again and she switched tactics. “-Loke?”

To her great surprise, he started to chitter happily, moving his snout up so it was resting gently against her chest, stomach and legs. He couldn’t rest it completely against her, holding a lot of his weight back, but the clear affection was there. She paused, her brain chugging along as she decided to test the waters.

“...Loke” A sound like a purr rumbled through him and then her. It actually felt kinda nice, surprisingly. But if he was acting so positively then… “You want me to call you Loke?”

He hummed, closing his eyes as he tried to lean against her without squashing her, it was awkward, but was really his only way of hugging her, of confirming her suspicions. She patted his snout, before giving in and hugging him, feeling his cool, hard scales beneath her hands.

“Why? It was just a spur of the moment nickname” He nudged her, whining, frustrated and upset that she wasn’t understanding. Shooting for answers was better than leaving him miserable so- “Do you like it more than your name?”

He paused, thinking the question over, before deciding to nod, wow was it that hard a decision? He purred again, before something rough and wet hit her cheek. She was frozen solid when it hit her that he had just licked her, his purr still rumbling between them. 

“...Or maybe you just like me?”

He beamed, thrashing his tail around, and she realised she had hit the nail on the head. He liked that name because she had been the one to come up with it. He wanted it as his name for that reason and that reason alone. He was such a simple dork, but it was sweet in a way. He cared deeply for her as a friend, and if this was his way of showing it she would go along with it.

“Ok, i’ll only call you Loke from now on, it is nice to know your proper name though. Who knows, one day I might need it”

He grumbled a little to himself, trying to bury himself deeper into her arms, despite the size difference between them.

“Ok ok,maybe I won’t, just relax Loke”

At his name being spoken again, he did just that. He slumped a little, before realising that was a bad idea in their current position, he got up, but just so he could lie down and curl around her, his side at her back and his head and tail in front of her.She leaned back against him, finding herself surprisingly comfortable. His scales weren’t too uncomfortable as she had figured they would be. She sighed when she caught him staring at her, a look of bemusement flashed in his eyes. She bet he figured he’d won today, and he probably had. Not only was she going to call him by a nickname, but she was now laying against him once more. For a dragon he loved humans too much.

“I guess I'm stuck here huh?” He nodded slightly, gaze completely focused on her. “...Do you want to hear more of my story idea?” 

He chirped in the positive, his tail tapping lightly against the ground as he got himself comfortable and settled in. He loved story time.

And so that’s how she spent the rest of the day, telling tales of adventure, fantasy and romance to a dragon. And, interestingly enough, it felt peaceful and right.


	5. Weapons, baths and treasures

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lucy and Loke share some bonding time as their connection gets a little stronger.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm slowly starting to get the whispers of a storyline, this was just meant to be fluff!

A few weeks later and Loke had come back with a large haul of gold, food and weaponry. When he dropped a banner of a snarling dragon, she had realised he had probably gotten this stuff from thieves, but that didn’t make her feel any better. Loke claimed he didn’t badly hurt anyone, and she would just have to take his word on that, in return, she made him promise to return everything they didn’t need to the nearest town, rather than toss it away. Someone could really need this stuff and it would make her feel much better about technically being a thief.

It was how they found themselves digging through the pile, Loke trying to work out which gold coins were actually shiny enough to warrant being in his hoard and her, trying to figure out which weapon would work the best for her. It may seem odd, Loke had given her a side eye as she pulled out rusty swords and old bows, but she wanted to be able to defend herself. She was living with a dragon, she was never going to be the stronger of the two, but she wanted to protect their home while he was away.

Unsurprisingly her tales of adventure had reminded her of what she had wanted in the first place, to explore this vast world and see all she can. To do that, she needed to be able to get out of a tough situation. While that may not completely apply anymore, she could still leave with Loke to hunt, or maybe they could find a new treasure together? A part of her brightened at the thought, taking the mental image of them beaming over some new important object they had found together, and placing it high on a pedestal. On the very top of things she wanted to accomplish before it became impossible ...which unfortunately meant training with a weapon.

The swords had been too heavy and awkward for her to handle, everytime she tried to swing her body would follow it, losing control fast. After she almost got Loke’s tail, leading to subsequent angry chittering/scolding, she had dropped them in the discard pile. Perhaps some weapon-smith could sell them or something. 

The bow had somehow been worse, she got the basic idea with a sword, but with no one around to teach her the beginner techniques, she wasn’t even sure if she was handling the bow properly. The arrows felt uncomfortable in her hands and when she was finally able to dock one in the bow, she got the sneaking suspicion her grip and stance were all wrong. She had tried a few shots, most arrows just dropping down while one veered madly to the left, before ultimately giving up. With time, and a teacher, she could probably use them decently, but she had neither, so into the discard pile they went.

She pouted, upset with herself and the situation, Loke suddenly chuckling deeply didn’t help. She turned on him, glaring sharply.

“Oh shut it you! At least I've given something away. You’re still debating over two coins!”

He frowned at her, huffing before glaring at the offensive currency at his feet. He growled, clearly seeing some difference her poor human eyes couldn’t comprehend. To her they both looked like identical jewels, same year, same picture on them, cleaned to perfection. There was no difference, and yet apparently…She pointed to the one on the left.

“There, keep that one, it’s better. You done now?”

He stared for a moment before gently moving the left jewel to a small pile, casually dumping the right into a much larger pile. He grinned at her, nudging the large reject pile to be next to her weapons. What imperfection in them he could see she had no clue, but she bet someone will be happy with that kind donation. Looking over the handful of objects they had left, he murmured in confusion and picked up what looked to be a long piece of rope. He waved it around, it’s sharp movements revealing it to actually be a leather whip. Watching it move, she cried out as an idea hit her. She held out her hand giddily.

“Loke, pass that to me! Please!”

His head turned to her, eyebrows furrowed in confusion. Still, he did as she asked, slowly holding the whip above her expectant hand and let go. She caught it in the air, moving away from him before standing still.

She experimented with a few swings, finding it much lighter and more responsive to her movements then the sword or bow. She sped up, landing blow after blow on the ground in front of her, before grinning up at him, satisfied. 

“I think we’ve found my new weapon! I’ll need to practice, but this whip will be perfect for me!”

He looked unconvinced, tilting his head as he looked her up and down. Caught in the moment, she lashed forward, meaning to make the whip stop just before his face, daydreams of actually catching him off guard wheeling around in her brain. 

Instead, however, he lifted up one scaled hand, allowing the whip to wrap around one of his claws. His eyes locked with hers as he grinned, lifting the whip up, pulling her up and off the ground. She yelled in fear, suddenly remembering that time she climbed down a mountain. No that wasn’t helpful right now brain thank you. 

“Loke! Put me down!”

With a relaxed shrug, he sat down, still holding her up as high as he could, and undid the whip from his claw. He held it out in front of him, beaming at her as she glared, already catching on to his plan.

“Don’t.You.Dare”

He chuckled before lowering her slightly and letting go. She wasn’t far off the ground, so while the fall on her butt hurt, it wasn’t debilitating. Through her behind argued that point. She glared up at the dragon, not impressed with his childish glee, body vibrating with joy at his prank. She groaned as she stood up, wincing as her muscles protested the movement.

“That wasn’t funny, wait till I get better with this, you’ll be in trouble then!”

His slight giggling turned into full blown rumbling that bounced off the rocky walls. Her glare intensified as her cheeks puffed out. There was going to be no calming that damn dragon down now. She bundled up her new whip, determined to have this be her new weapon and prove him wrong! She chucked the whip onto the bed, going to sit on it before realising her clothes were covered in dirt and grime from the cave floor. She rolled her eyes, now even more annoyed with her friend’s antics. She left Loke organising the last of his haul, stomping off to her little room,cut off from the rest of the cavern. She was glad her ‘shower’ room had some privacy, on principle if nothing else. She had left towels in here, ones that Loke had…’picked up’ for her, so at least she had that for comfort.

She peeled off her dirty clothes, dumping them onto the floor to be cleaned later, placing her shoes and socks by them. She walked under the cold stream, showers always were a rush, before she shivered to death, an in then out affair. How she longed for a warm bubble bath, add that to the short list of things she missed from home. She sighed, yelping as she got into the cold water, letting it wash away the dirt on her skin and in her hair. There was a low grumble, turning to follow the noise, to no surprise, there was Loke, turned away from her, but pointedly licking his claws. She almost screamed. She got out from under the water, wrapping a towel around her body, protecting her innocence from...something, she wasn't sure what or why exactly. She started to storm over to him, when the rocks scratching the underside of her feet finally registered. She held out a hand, telling him to stay as she quickly slipped her shoes on, cringing at the now wet material.

She plodded over, not as aggressively, stopping in front of him. He spared her a quick look, before continuing to lick himself.

“You know not everyone can lick themselves clean. Stop acting so smug”

He paused in his cleaning, his tongue hanging out slightly as he looked he over. He chirped at her, leaning over to lick her.  _ Not the problem here! _ She pushed his snout away, holding the towel with one hand while the other rested on her hip.

“I don’t want you to clean me! I don’t want dragon slobber all over me! I don’t exactly feel great about this whole thing as is” She sighed deeply, shrugging a little. “Cleaning yourself in a cold stream doesn’t exactly make you feel glamorous. I get you’ve been in a silly mood today, but could you lay off a little? I need to go change.”

He whined softly, nudging her gently. She smiled softly up at him.

“I know you’re sorry, it’s been a weird day. I just really want to become strong, to be able to pull my weight ya know? Standing around in here day in day out is driving me crazy! It’s great that I've learnt so much from my reading, but I want to use it. I need to prove my worth”

What was it about him that pulled the truth from her? All her insecurities laid bare for him. It was hard to lie to a dragon anyway, but something about this soft hearted sap made it even harder. How could anyone look into those wide, curious eyes and lie? He huffed, stomping away from her. She figured she had upset him, when he turned his head to face her, chattering in a clear invite to follow. She pointed to her toweled up state, wet and freezing.

“I need to get changed Loke” 

He murmured before rambling in that strange language, sounding urgent. She gave in, following along as he led her to the back of the cave. She stopped as he walked into his treasure room, choosing to wait outside, not wanting a repeat of last time.

After a minute, he came back, holding out something for her, it looked clothes shaped, so sh snatched it off him, motioning for him to turn around, ignoring his bemused look as he did so.

She tossed the towel, putting on what was quickly revealed to be a sleeveless dress. It was long and flowing, going all the way down to her feet. It was a light gold, with a silver trim at the bottom. Small silver stars danced along the bottom of the dress, not flashy, just a nice detail. It felt like something she would have worn back home, with her hair pinned up and covered in makeup. The effect she had in it was probably ruined by her only just cleaned face and wet hair, but it still felt nice to wear, that was probably thanks to the silk cloth. The combination of the two colours made it a clear choice for Loke, remembering he was there, she peered shyly up at him.

“How do I look?”

He was looking at her strangely, a pleased hum vibrated through him before his head lowered to get a proper view of her. She glanced into his eyes, mesmerised as the pupils first widened, then constricted, staring very intently at her. A purr rumbled easily through him as he circled her, tail rocking slowly. Unused to this kind of attention from him, she stammered, unsure of what to say.

“...So...I take it you like it?”

He snorted, stopping behind her before nudging her forward with his nose. She froze, feet planted firmly in the ground.

“Wait Loke, that’s your room, i’m not allowed in there remember?”

He wasn’t listening to her, or maybe he couldn’t hear her? His eyes were still constricted, his mind focused on something, it all felt very familiar, but she couldn’t quite place it. He nudged her a little harder, grumbling slightly, forcing her to walk into the room. She moved all the way over to the large piles of treasure, surprised even further by the fact he nudged her to sit on one. It wasn’t the most comfortable thing, sitting on coins and gems, but it seemed to please him greatly. His eyes blew up completely, black taking up most of his eyes as he started to fidget and wiggle on the spot in excitement.

There was no anger, no snarling, no hiss. She had no idea what to make of it.

“I…I’m allowed in here now?”

He nodded, collapsing forward to lay in front of her, laying the edge of his chin on her lap. He didn’t blink as the minutes dragged on, that loud purring getting louder. There was nothing but pure awe and wonder in his expression, it was cute, but also embarrassing. She bit her lip, definitely not used to this reaction to her in a dress.

“I’ll make sure to take good care of this place, you can trust me...and thank you. You were trying to cheer me up and apologise weren’t you? Silly, you didn’t have to-”

A small growl voiced his disagreement, claws digging into the ground below him. Rather, he seemed to think this was the best thing he could have ever done. Such a silly dragon, trying to please her like this, trying to make her feel welcome and loved. She could feel the tears started to well up in her eyes as her heart burst open. Why was this place more of a home to her? How could a dragon feel more like a family? She didn’t care. What mattered was right in front of her.

“See? This is why I have to get stronger. To pay you back for all of this. I promise I’ll help you as much as you help me. We’ll be important to each other”

At that last statement he let out a chirp of agreement, trying to nuzzle her. Laughter bubbled up from inside her, hugging him close to stop him accidentally squishing her.

The strangest feeling suddenly shimmered through her, certain and as clear as day. She was already incredibly important to him, she just couldn’t work out why she would be. Or how she knew that.


	6. Sanctuary lost

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lucy's fears come to pass.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning, this is not a drill, a plot has been gained folks! Probably not that surprising with how obsessed I've been with this AU. I really love it but I have been abandoning my other story for this one, so I'm going to make my next update in that one, then try and write for them both more evenly.

As the week flew by her proficiency with the whip only improved. She was getting good at moving alongside the weapon, letting it flow with her. She wasn’t sure how powerful the actual hits were, but at least she could hit something. Loke would lazily watch her, amused everytime she messed up, but cheering with her when she managed to get a move right. 

He wanted her to wear the dress more often now, it wasn’t easy to explain to him that dresses were hard to train in, but he got the general gist. Maybe soon she would wear it again, if for nothing else but the ego boost that comes from a dragon approving of how you look. They were picky beings, she had seen that first hand, so if he liked her enough to allow her to touch his treasures, then she had to assume she looked beautiful. Yep definitely an ego boost. 

Loke flying off for food signified the end of another training session, dropping the whip with an exhausted sigh. She had really pushed herself today, which is probably why he was pushing off early. He did nothing more than watch usually, but the moment he thought she needed a rest he had no shame in whining at her until she sat down, insufferable dragon that he was. She smiled as he flew off into the distance, a part of her that would never be spoken out loud, thanking him for caring. 

Letting out a small huff, she made her way to her pot, getting ready to boil some water, any other type of drink was a rarity these days, her experiments with berries hadn’t really gotten far yet, when she swore she heard a small noise. She froze, alert as her ears tried to pick up on anything. Loke didn’t do silent and most creatures knew to stay away from here. It got maddenly quiet when he wasn’t around, another reason as to why she desperately needed to busy herself. So used to the lack of noise, she wasn’t surprised she could hear quiet whispering. The voices of people desperately trying to not be heard.

She picked up her whip from the floor, previous exhaustion washed away by adrenaline, she quickly crept behind her bed, hiding as best she could, when some figures pulled themselves up and into the cave.The light illuminated their figures, allowing her to see hazy silhouettes of lightly armoured men. Not really the best for fighting a dragon, but you couldn’t get up here in a full suit, or so she figured. She didn’t want to meet the supposed mountain of a knight that could. Their longswords drew her attention as her mind ran in circles trying to think of a plan. There was a small group, whose plan was probably to grab her while the dragon was away. Had they been here a while? Watching their schedule? She cursed under her breath, how had they not noticed? She readied herself for a fight when she froze, the closest knight (their leader?) called her name.

“Miss Lucy? It’s ok, we’re here now. We’re here to take you back to safety.”

As they walked forward, she saw it, her father's crest on their shoulders. She pushed herself down, hiding herself as far into the shadows as she could.  _ I can't go back there! _

Her breathing slowed then stopped as they got closer and closer, spreading out throughout the cavern, they’d be upon her soon, they would spot her! They- 

One of them called out to the others, voice filled with surprise and laughter.

“Guys, there’s treasure here!”

“Of course idiot, dragons keep gold, everyone knows that”

“We’re here for the girl...but we could line our pockets first?”

They grouped together, suddenly more interested in the gleaming coins down the hall. A loud discussion started on the merits and morals of ignoring their orders for their own gain. She wanted to run, praying they wouldn’t chase her down a mountainside, but that was Loke’s livelihood they were threatening. She had heard cautionary tales of dragons going crazy, ill or even depressed if their most important treasures were taken from them. They put all their heart and soul into it, if these morons stole something of that much value...then even if she escaped, her peaceful life with her dragon could be over. 

Call her selfish, but she just couldn’t handle that.

Her grip tightened and she lashed out before she even knew what she was doing.The element of surprise was the only thing going for her, the only reason that she was able to snare one in the whip, tying his legs and pulling him to the ground. The others drew their swords, facing her in shock and anger.

“What do you think you’re-”

“I think I should be asking you that! You trespass into our home then dare try to take Loke’s things? I didn’t realise my father employed criminals these days”

“Why you-”

The man from earlier stepped forward, shushing his companion.

“Calm yourself, the foul beast has clearly bewitched her. He must force her to do all kinds of cruel and menial tasks, all while making her think she’s happy”

There was a pause, before they seemed to accept this idea, swords lowering slightly. The leader, captain was probably the better word, moved to untie his soldier, she pulled him back, dragging him across the rocks, not caring when he yelled of cut up skin. She glared as menacingly as she could while her stomach was simultaneously dropping and doing backflips. 

“I’m not under his control, i’m happy here, take your men and leave. Don’t touch anything, just go!”

“What’s stopping us from taking you away by force?”

They got a little closer, calling her bluff and she mentally screamed at herself. Loke had only just left, he would be gone a while since he liked to make sure they were both full, could she really string them along until he got back? Probably not but she could try.

“I’m not sure my father would be happy if I didn’t come back in…’perfect condition’. If i’m so injured he can’t marry me off, what’s even the point in me coming back?”

Despite the fact that she was the one using the argument, she couldn’t stop her heart from sinking a little, an age old sadness she thought she had long shaken off returning back to her. She shook her head, trying to shake it off too, she could think about that later, when swords weren’t pointed at her. Was it possible to ask Loke to get her some ice cream?

“Well even if the old man doesn’t pay us, there’s definitely enough money in there to keep us all rich for life, so really, you’re in no position to be threatening us”

She gulped, her bluff well and truly shredded as one bent down to free his buddy, while the others circled around her. A strong arm roughly grabbed her arm, pulling her close, close enough she could count the hairs of his beard.

“Now be a good girl and don’t fight anymore, ok?”

Unfortunately, she didn’t know how to play nice. His friend was free, so was her whip. She flicked it up with her free hand, catching the two off guard and in the face. She twisted her arm, bringing it around, to catch him in the side. He yelled, letting go of her to clutch at his side,so she flicked the whip up and brought it down on his shoulder. The light armour took the brunt of the force, but he still grunted, stepping back while she did the same. They regrouped, anger radiating from them as they took defensive stances, some more stable than others.

“Do you really think you can beat us all?”

No, but she didn't have to. Victory here didn’t mean winning, though she wished it did. Victory could still be gained by stalling. It usually took Loke around half an hour to find enough food and lug it back, he was picky about what he brought to her, so it took time. It must have been ten minutes at least since he left. The longer she could keep this up, the more chance there was of him catching up to them and finding her. If she let them have too much of a head start they might have ways of eluding him, she couldn’t let that happen. She took a fighting stance of her own, ready to cause them as much pain as possible on her way down.

“You’ve just made a big mistake, I hope you’re ready to be dragged-”

Whatever he was going to say was cut off with a loud roar. A beastly sound filled with anger and hatred. She had never heard such a sound before. In flew her dragon, much too early, yet still much appreciated. His eyes were slits, fangs bared as he roared once more. His eyes were drawn to her and he immediately noticed how close one of the soldiers were to her. He crouched down low, tail swaying slowly as he hissed, a deep and ugly sound she only remembered hearing once, back when he was protecting his gold from her. In her stupor, she was grabbed yet again, perhaps to be used as a shield, and the sound got worse. It raised in volume and venom, scratching deep into your mind, lodging itself there. It couldn’t have been more of a warning if Loke tried and yet, they still didn’t move. Perhaps it was fear, perhaps it was some form of bravado, but their swords remained raised. 

Magic swirled around the cavern as light started to form in Loke’s mouth, it was pulled from the air around him, causing a dark haze around his body, he lowered his head, aimed and attacked in a way Lucy had never seen before. 

Loke’s previous light shows had been cute, little lazers to start fires, small orbs to chase the darkness away. But when you thought of dragons fighting you thought of them breathing fire, a part of her still expected that. So it shocked even her when light poured out instead of flame, in a large beam that exuded intense heat as it soared past. It struck and sent most of them flying, the only one saved was the one holding her. Though she got the feeling he wouldn't be safe for long. His scaled head turned to face them, his cold glare enough to freeze them still. She thought she had seen him angry before, well she was wrong. Even in their little tiffs, he had never radiated such cold malice, such wilful hatred. She saw him for the monster he truly was...and was somehow unafraid. Startled? Yes. Shaken? Absolutely, she was shaking like a leaf under his stare. Afraid of this giant baby that cried yesterday because he accidentally ripped the head off of one of her teddy bears? Never.

He snarled, a threat and a promise, she felt the pressure on her arm leave her. In his fear he had let her go, she ran as fast as she could to his side, allowing one wing to drop down and hover beside her, protecting her. His claws gripped the rock, breaking them in his rage filled grip. He roared again, echoing off the walls and tilted his head to the exit of the cave. He was letting them go? How generous of him...still. She hugged his front leg in thanks, feeling the way his scales and muscles relaxed under her touch. He huffed, watching from above as one by one, they picked themselves up and limped out, wounded and defeated, really from his mere presence alone. The light breath had been a bit overkill. They mumbled and groaned about more returning as they left, dumping cold water on her relief, her father would not stop with this. He was a greedy and foolish man, he would be back. He wouldn’t stop until either she was back home, or it got too expensive to justify anymore, she wasn’t sure which would happen first. 

She idly watched Loke looking out over the mountain, making sure they left. So caught up in her distress, she didn’t notice Loke rush back over to her, almost tackling her before he stopped himself. Instead he collapsed in front of her, the large rush of wind almost blowing her off her feet. He scrambled to get close to her, to sniff at her, to examine her closely, muttering quickly under his breath, worry evident in his tone. Well evident in everything he was doing really, his fidgety and hasty way of checking her for marks probably wasn’t helping either of them. 

Her stomach plummeted when he finally noticed the bruises just starting to show on her arm from all the manhandling, the dark growl had her reeling as he shot back up again, turning and seemingly ready to tear someone apart before she grabbed at his leg, hugging it tightly.

“I’m ok Loke, really. Everything’s ok, please calm down.”

She rubbed him in what she hoped were soothing circles as he started to breath deeply. They stayed like that for a moment, before he pulled his leg gently out of he grasp, laying back down and placing his head on the floor. She took the hint to hug his nose and she watched as his pupils dilated then returned to normal size, before his eyes closed, relaxing into her touch as he whimpered softly. His previously ragged breathing calmed and she had a feeling he would just fall asleep in her arms if she let him, but she couldn’t, not this time. She patted his nose, catching his attention as he blearily stared at her.

“Loke I...I think I should leave”

For a moment nothing happened, she almost thought he hadn’t heard her, when he suddenly sat up, almost taking her with him, thank the stars for fast reflexes. He fidgeted with the rocks underneath him, wide eyed and panicked, much more awake and alert now. His wings rising and threatening to start flapping as he got more and more worked up. 

“It’s not because I don’t like being with you Loke. I do. But my father knows where I am now, he will send more people here, I won’t put you in danger. I hate to say it but if you’re badly wounded or...or killed” She spat out the word, hating the feel of it on her tongue. “Then no one but me will care. In fact people will probably celebrate that he got rid of a ‘monstrous dragon’. I need to leave and so do you. I’m going to go and find some town or village or something. You need to find a new cave, they will return here and they need to come back to an empty cave.”

Affronted, he spread himself as wide as he could, blocking her from leaving, frowning down at her. 

“There isn’t time to fight, you have to leave! It’s for your own good. They’ll steal everything here Loke, take everything from you, if they don’t just kill you. Don’t you understand?”

He paused, thinking something over before nodding slowly. A deep breath left her, relieved, thinking she had won, she was surprised when he scooped her up in his claws and padded over to her bed, unceremoniously dropping her onto it. She groaned, annoyed at being tossed around, she tried to get up, but a claw gently pushed her back down. She tried to push against him but he growled, leveling her with a stare. She relented, sighing sinking down into the bed. Appeased, he moved away from her, making his way out. He turned back to her, huffing loudly at her. She pouted in response.

“Yes mother, I won’t leave” 

_ Tonight, I won’t leave tonight. _

He chuckled, stress rolling off his shoulders as he nodded at her, then took off, flying out into the horizon. 

Where was he going? Trying to scout out his new home? Was he finding a town for her? That was kind of him. She yawned, the mad rush that was the last hour or so hitting her like a brick. She could stay for now, but she would have to say her goodbyes tomorrow, leave her sweet Loke to keep him safe. 

She didn’t sleep much that night, heart playing all her happy memories with him on repeat. She didn’t fully drift away until he returned, even then, the loud banging and moving had her a little concerned. But exhaustion soon dragged her down into the dark. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And thus I close on another cliffhanger, feel free to hate me it's ok.


	7. New home, New people

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lucy and Loke are off to somewhere new, where some new faces may just help them out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm back! Work has been pouring the overtime on me lately, I think I may die.  
Still I hope you enjoy!

She woke up to an empty cave, sitting up, the only thing around was her bed. There was no other furniture, there was no Loke and she bet there was no treasure in his little cavern. Before she could stop herself, she was crying. She had been the one to tell him to go, yet it hurt so much that he had just left. She wiped at the flowing tears, trying to make them go away. She had to be stronger than this, she was on her own now. She focused on her breathing, trying to calm down her sobs, when she heard a noise outside. A loud flap of wings suggested that Loke had returned. She froze before quickly laying under her covers, trying to hide her tears and quieten her sniffling.

He landed with a thud, before plodding over to where she was. She was sure he was here for the final piece of furniture, the bed. He nudged her gently, trying to wake her. She stubbornly kept her eyes closed, despite her harsh words, she didn't want to say goodbye. He would have to pull her out and force her, even then, she wasn't sure she would be pleasant. She tightened her body, silently pushing away his attempts to rouse her. There was a snort above her head, a puff of air pushed against her, before he moved away, had he given up? She was almost insulted, before the bed moved underneath her. A squeak almost escaped her, smothered by the mattress pushing up against her as it moved. 

They slowly moved throughout the cave, the image of him on his hind legs, being overly careful with precious cargo. The squeak turned into a small chuckle, mirrored by a deep rumble around her. Confusion as to why he would be chuckling quickly disappeared as he jumped out of the cave and started to fly. She rolled around a little before sitting up, the covers fell, so she got hit by strong gusts of air. He was carrying the bed in his two front claws, flying above it. The view was amazing...but not enough to make her forget the scare. She glared upwards, not missing or appreciating his toothy grin.

“Loke! I could have fallen!”

He grunted shaking his head, there was a flop by he feet and she finally noticed his tail on the bed, ready to steady her or catch her if need be.

“That was a little risky, don't you think?”

He snorted, tail moving to tickle her feet, the little tuft of hair making her burst out in reluctant laughter. Oh how she cursed the day he learned humans were ticklish. She crossed her legs as she sat up, a desperate attempt to protect her feet. She rose an eyebrow up at him as he cheekily stuck his tongue out, tail retreating to soar back behind him. 

“Let me guess, that was punishment for pretending to be asleep?”

A quick nod and an amused snort, well at least someone was having fun. A peaceful silence overtook them, one where she could watch the scenery pass by, the sun rising p to dye the world pinks and oranges. It was beautiful, seeing the earth beneath her this early, while it was quiet and undisturbed, was a rare blessing, another gift her dragon had given her. They flew over trees and fields, over winding valleys and rivers, she drank it all in, forgetting about her friend for a short while. The awe wore off after a while, enough to let her speak again.

“It’s beautiful isn’t it?”

A small hum confirmed his agreement. She wondered what it was like, seeing the world like this all the time. If she could, she would fly forever, away from those who would use and hurt her, she would find her own peaceful spot, where she could fly and explore forever. It was something she had taken from Loke in a small sense, with her along he would get wrapped up in her problems, yet, sharing this amazing view with him, she didn’t want to let him go.

“I’m sorry Loke...I just didn’t want to say goodbye earlier...i’m not ready to”

He stopped, wings keeping him hovering in the air, his head bent down to look at her, tilted in confusion, waiting for her to go on.

“It’s a little selfish of me, to be the reason you have to leave your home, then still stick around afterwards.I know I need to leave, i told you that, but I really don’t…”

Tears started to return as she failed to hold in her emotions, to keep a straight face in front of her friend. At her sobbing, he cried out in alarm, twitching frantically and looking around. He dove down to a clearing, dumping the bed the moment it was low enough. Before she could even react he’d picked her up, covers and all, bringing her up to nuzzle her as gently as he could. It was his version of a hug and she hadn’t known she had needed it that much.

“I don't ...I don’t think i’m going to be leaving you for awhile Loke...I need...I need time first”

A hum rumbled through them both as he nuzzled her, showering her with affection.

“Ok, I get it, you don’t mind. I swear it’s like you want me to stay forever”

His tail dragged across the ground as the rumble increased in volume. Wait a second he couldn't really-? He knew he was a dragon right?! Big scary lizard thing that keeps well away from humans unless it’s to hurt them. In reality she knew their time together was odd and would have to end, for his safety really. But he wanted...no she was probably reading too much into things. She rubbed her eyes before putting on a brave smile for him.

“Let’s go Loke, I believe you were taking me somewhere?”

He pulled back, beaming at her, he pulled the blankets off her, putting them on the bed, before standing on three feet on placing her on his shoulder. She quickly made her way in between his shoulder blades, holding onto his mane for balance. A moments wait to make sure she was steady, then he picked up the bed and took off once more. There was something amazing about feeling him move underneath her, something different about the same scenery when riding on him, a buzz that wasn’t there before. She rode that happiness, letting it lift her as they flew.

They eventually came close to a small town, he flew lower to skirt around it but he rumbled and nodded in its direction, making sure she took note of it. Further north of the town was a hill with a large wooden building on it. She was intrigued, even as they pulled west of it, into a dense forest. He slowed and came to a stop in front of a mossy mound, a dark cave entrance naturally carved into it, leaving the edges jagged. He started moving the bed inside, letting her stay on him as he did so. He plodded down a small tunnel, his small lights leading the way, before it came out into a cave centre. It was damp and murky, the floor uneven as Loke strolled across it. She had a small feeling there was going to be many trips in her future, she’d just have to get used to it. There were many tunnels leading off into different directions all along the wall. 

“Woah, where do they all go Loke?”

He shrugged, moving her a little from her perch, not that motivated to search and find out. Well, she had something new to do she supposed. All her stuff was on the left side, she noted fondly that it was the side with the least tunnels, trying to protect her perhaps? Or again maybe she was thinking too much into it. His treasure was surprisingly in the same room, in fact there was only a small distance between where her stuff ended and his began. She frowned, a little confused.

“Loke? Why’s our stuff so close together?”

He let out an excited chirp, rushing over as quickly as he could without completely dislodging her, eager to show off his idea. He laid down, chittering excitedly, so she slipped off him, swept along with his happiness. He placed her bed down by her wardrobe ad nudged her to sit on it. Amused, she allowed him to move her onto her bed, sitting there and eyeing him, intrigued. He laid by his treasure pile, before beaming at her, fidgeting in excitement. She didn’t mean to throw a wrench into his plans, but she wasn’t following.

“So...what’s got you so happy?”

He whined at her and she almost laughed at how pathetic he looked. He got up, waddling over to one of the tunnels, before entering it and going out of view. He let out a loud whine and poked his head through, looking back into the tunnel then back at her. She thought back to their previous home and realised the connection.

“...You want to be able to see me and your treasure at the same time?”

He charged back over to her, the cave rocking as he did so, over the moon she had understood, he laid back down beside her, nattering in his language as he explained something of apparent great importance. He was so happy over something so simple as getting to sleep by the both of them, she shook her head, fondness for her silly dragon warming up inside her. A loud yawn overtook him, showing off all his teeth, his eyes drooped as he struggled to stay awake. 

“Did you sleep at all last night?”

A quiet murmur was her response as he slowly lost the fight to stay awake. She sighed deeply.

“Thank you for bringing this all here, but you should sleep today, rest and regain your strength”

She got off the bed, moving to her wardrobe to change, he whined softly at the loss of her company.

“I’ll be ok Loke, I just want to go into the town, see what it’s like”

He tried to sit up, vaguely more alert now, before his legs gave out and he slumped back to the ground, he whined from where he was, objecting to her going alone. 

“I'll be fine, I’m just going to check it out. Besides, I might be able to get a job, which means I'll be able to earn my way. I could buy my own necessities instead of having to rely on you stealing them for me. I could make new friends too, wouldn’t that be great?”

A huff followed by a roll of his eyes, she abandoned her wardrobe for the moment, walking over to pet his snout.

“I’ll be back before sundown ok? I don’t want to walk through that forest in the dark. Please rest and don’t worry”

The ground shifted beneath him as he sank down into it, giving up on getting up. He stared at her through half lidded eyes, pleading with her to be safe. She held him the best she could, whispering softly to him until he was lulled gently to sleep.

An hour or so later and she was ready to go, dressed in a white and blue sleeveless shirt and blue skirt, it seemed a simple enough outfit, it allowed free movement anyway. It had proven cold in the cave though, maybe she needed thermal tights. Her hair was brushed up into a ponytail and a rucksack rested on her back, it had some snacks and emergency supplies, just incase. Her whip rested on a brown belt around her hip, ready at a moments notice. A quick look back showed Loke was still fast asleep, so off she went, ready for adventure. 

A pro to this new home, she soon found, was the lack of heart attack inducing heights. No downward climb and an easy walk into the forest made up for the awful floors and maze like structure of the place. Maybe she could make little signs in there? It would help her if not Loke. She walked through this new forest, mentally taking note of trees plants and memorable things. She wanted to have some notion of where she was going when she returned, otherwise she feared she would be alone in the woods for the night. She continued in the general direction of the town, ducking under branches and making her way through bushes and over fallen logs. She finally came to a clearing in the trees, she looked over various paths, some leading out into the world, merging together into one stony path that lead, to he delight, into that town she saw earlier. With a spring in her step she strolled over, taking a ep breath before stepping onto the path. Her return to civilization, to a place where hopefully no one knew her name, she couldn't wait. Eagerly she ran up the path and past the large gates at the entrance, proudly welcoming everyone to ‘Magnolia’. 

_ Like the flower? What a pretty name for a pretty town! _

Filled with renewed confidence she slowed down to take in every detail, see everything happening in a town just waking up. She made her way past wooden homes, personally decorated with licks of paint and flowers, cafes putting out tables and brewing delicious smelling hot drinks. Stores and small stalls were setting up their wares for the day, a rich collection of food, furniture, clothes, magic, everything! She was pretty sure she could find anything she wanted to here. Excitement bubbled up inside her as she bounced around the town, waving hello to strangers and almost falling into a river flowing through the town, if not for the friendly warning from a man in a gondola. 

Noone recognised her, no one called for her to be caught and dragged back to her father, this town was absolutely perfect! Now what could she do next-

“Ugh Happy...I think this might be the end. We worked too hard in that last job, we won't make it home”

“...Aye…”

“Ice breath will find our bodies and laugh at us”

“...Aye…”

She stopped as she heard two weak voices. Sat down in the middle of the street, being ignored by everyone else was a man and a...blue cat? Well she did live with a dragon so maybe she shouldn't be too surprised things like this exist in this world. They both looked run down, frustration marred both of their expressions as they breathed heavily. She quickly jogged over, crouching down before them and tried to talk to them.

“Are you two ok?”

They looked up at her, challenging Loke for most pathetic looking faces she had ever seen.

“So hungry...need food”

“...please…”

She was mildly surprised a cat was talking to her, but again, she lives with a dragon. She was also very sheltered from the ways of the world outside of its business politics, maybe all animals had a species that talked? Even if not, if cats wanted to talk, who was she to stop them? He might even be the most intellectual out of the two. She nodded, pulling her bag off her back to reach inside it for her snacks. Her hand immediately touched raw meat and she groaned in annoyance. Loke had a nasty habit of hiding food everywhere, like he was expecting some sort of global food shortage, but was her bag the best place for this? It must have gotten rustled around as she walked, pushing it more forward. She pulled out the small slab of raw meat, it was probably intended for her, considering the size, so maybe more of a surprise than a hiding space. She was wondering what to do with it when it was rudely snatched out of her hands. The strange man was on his knees, the cat stood up by him, the both of them salivating over the meat, they knew it was raw right?!

“THANK YOU!”

With that yell they both dug into their meal, devouring it until there was nothing left, well that got rid of it at least, she would have to remember to tell Loke not to hide meat in her stuff, she thought he had learnt that after the bed incident, apparently not. After the slab was gone they jumped up, surprising her and forcing her to quickly stand up herself. They both bowed deeply, completely embarrassing her, though a quick look around showed no one was paying them any attention. Was this normal? Town life might be weirder than she first thought.

“You’re a princess!”

“The best ever!”

“Thank you!”

Overwhelmed wasn’t quite the right word, rather she didn’t know what you could possibly say to someone suddenly proclaiming you’re the best thing to walk the planet just because you gave them some food. She jumped when the man was suddenly up in her face, scrutinising her closely.

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen you around here before…” She slowly shook her head, causing him to beam. “ You’re visiting? My name’s Natsu! And this is Happy!”

The blue cat flew (_ flew!) _up by his shoulder, grinning at her.

“That’s me! Who are you?”

“...Um...I’m Lucy?”

“Pleased to meet ya Lucy! As thanks for the food we’ll show you all the best spots around!”

“Right all the best spots to fish!”

“And eat!”

“And train!”

“And-”

“I get it!” Geez these two were excitable, it was exhausting just watching them. “Thank you. I’m kinda looking for a job. The training sounds like a good place to start, I want to travel the world and have adventures you know? Help people along the way. I might move here one day you see, so I want to have some steady income while following my dreams. Do you know a place that can help me with that?”

They paused, before turning their heads to share a grin,one that sent shivers down her spine. The sudden feeling that she had unleashed something terrible crept over her.

“We know just the place you’re looking for!”

“You...you do?”

“Yep!” Natsu slung an arm around her shoulders, turning her and pointing up to the large building on the hill. “You wanna go there, to Fairytail”

“Fairytail?”

He proudly showed off a mark on his shoulder, a deep black symbol depicting some sort of strange creature with a tail, a fairy? Memories of her storybooks told her they did not look like that. Happy turned around pulling up his small, cute, bag to reveal a similar mark on his back, except his was green.

“Yup, trust me, you’re going to love it there and if you want adventure, that’s where you wanna go!”

Fairytail huh? Well if it could really help her then...Yeah! That was where she was going next! She happily tagged along behind Natsu, who was seemingly over the moon at introducing someone new to his guild, hoping that this new place would be as promising and fun as it seemed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The plot thickens and a friendly face appears on the scene! What's next for Lucy? Hope she's prepared for Fairytail!


	8. Dragon meets fairies

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Loke is introduced to Lucy's new team.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so sorry, this season has me so busy at work, I come home so tired and unmotivated. I wrote this chapter line by line, it's a little longer than most chapters I write, so I hope that makes up for the wait!

She stood, awestruck by the large wooden building, a guildhouse Natsu had called it. A large sign with the guild symbol beside it named the building ‘Fairytail’, she had arrived. She stared for a moment, allowing it all to sink in, before Natsu grabbed at her hand and pulled her in. She was immediately bombarded by a loud and happy atmosphere. People chatting away, drinking together, teasing each other, it all looked so fun. She was pleased to note a library hidden away in the corner of the guild, if she was allowed she would definitely be checking that out. They walked over to a small bar, manned by a pretty looking woman, long silver hair that seemed to shine. She waved at the both of them as they walked over, a friendly smile on her face.

“Hello Natsu, back again are we? That job took you longer than expected”

He had the sense of mind to look sheepish, a toothy grin on his face.

“Yeah I got too hungry to move, but Lucy saved me!”

“Me too!”

Her attention was finally pulled over to her, she felt herself blushing as this kind woman waved at her. She wasn’t sure what it was, but she seemed to have a serene air about her.

“Well then, it’s a pleasure to meet you. I’m Mirajane, please make yourself at home, but watch out for flying chairs”

_ What? _

Mirajane’s amused look didn’t help her any. Why would she have to watch out for…? The gears in her brain slowly chugged along, attached so much to the idea of a chair with wings she didn’t notice Natsu speaking for her. 

“She says she wants to join our guild! Give her a guildmark Mira!”

“Aye! A big one!”

Those expressive eyes once more turned to her, she felt herself lean a little closer to her.

“Is that so? Where would you like it and in what colour?”

Her hands came up instinctively, years of manners drilled into her told her to not be so forward, even if Loke had slowly been undoing those reflexes. But talking to a dragon was way off talking to a human, besides, Loke had seen her with sniffles and bedhead, this was their first impression of her, it had to be good!

“I-I didn’t say that explicitly...and really it would only be if you wanted me to-”

Kind hands held her own, she looked up to see a warm and inviting smile.

“What do you want Lucy? I get the feeling that not many people ask you how you feel”

She was startled by her kindness and saddened to realise the last human to ask her what she wanted was her late mother. She didn’t really need to take a long time to think over what she desired most. 

“I want freedom, to be able to travel the world and see the sights, but I also want to help people, support them.” Rather like the heroes in her childhood books, was a warrior princess a thing? She could go for that. “I haven’t really had a lot of human contact either...so I want friends”

There was a brief moment in which the other woman stared deep into her eyes, almost like she was seeing through her. She was starting to get uncomfortable when she grinned at her.

“Then welcome aboard! Think about where you want your guild mark because it’s permanent unless you leave. Sadly I can't give it to you until you’ve at least met the guild master, but I'm sure it will be fine.”

Disappointment swelled up inside her, she would have to wait? Well hopefully it wouldn’t be too long, the last thing she needed was Loke barrelling in due to worry, she didn’t want to clean up that mess.

“Where is he?”

“He was called on an emergency summons early this morning, he should be back soon though, so sit down and make yourself at home. Would you like a drink?”

She gladly took a stool by the bar, accepting the offered drink, as long as it was non alcoholic. She had never drunk before and wasn’t about to let her weak tolerance affect the good luck she had going. Surprisingly, Natsu sat by her, his cat friend sitting on top of the bar next to him. He leaned on a hand, elbow resting on the bar as he waited for his own drink.

“So Lucy, now you’re a part of our family, what do you think your first mission will be?”

A family? She looked around the guild hall, finally getting a good look at her new friends. The atmosphere was a friendly one, with groups laughing and drinking together, chatting about their day, missions, plans, etc. They all seemed to enjoy each others company, rather like a close knit family. The idea warmed her soul and pleased her, yeah she could definitely enjoy this. Now to answer Natsu’s question, she probably shouldn’t go far without at least telling Loke first, so if she were to take a quest today then…

“I’m not sure, my first job should be something small, something local right?”

He snorted loudly, apparently not appeased by her response.

“Pffttt, your first job should be a big one! Show everyone what you can do and really make a name for yourself!”

“Yeah! Like thwarting a dark guild!”

“Or saving someone important!”

They continued on, each suggestion getting more and more absurd. She suddenly felt unsure of her choice, is this what the guild expected of her? Right off the bat? She’d only really just gotten the hang of fighting, could she really do anything like that? Douby slowly started to gnaw at her.

“Or maybe even-”

An ice shard flew past her ear, hitting the bar right by Natsu and startling him. Someone came up beside her, presumably the one to attack, if Natsu’s sudden rantingwas anything to go by. She turned to scold them, she could have been hit! But her vision was taken up by a bare chest. Leaning away slightly she was horrified to see the strange man was only in his boxers! She blushed and looked away, stunned silent by this weird behaviour.

“Lay off her flame brain, can't you see you’re overwhelming her?!”

“The only thing overwhelming her is your stupid body! Put some clothes on ice freak!”

“What’s weird about this? It’s calming!”

“Noone wants to see it!”

She took her drink and stood up, backing away from the fight about to break out, what was going on here? Unfortunately, she backed into what felt like a metal wall. She looked up into the terrifying face of a red haired woman. The glare she was currently sporting would wither plants on sight. She curled in on herself, stepping away while trying to make herself as small as possible, expecting that she had done something wrong. Instead, however, her sharp gaze never left the two boys now squabbling, throwing harsh words and punches at each other. A loud cough is all that’s needed to catch their attention, both of them swivelling to yell at the new target...until they realise who it is. She marvels at the effect this has on them, they both jumped apart, frightened and shaking, yelling apologies and bowing rapidly in front of her. All she does in response is cross her arms, her voice low and threatening. 

“Need I remind you that you both keep scaring people away? Is this really what you want everyone’s first impression of us to be? That we’re all just squabbling, unprofessional children?!”

“N-no Erza”

They spoke as one, terrified of this strong mountain that is ..Erza. What a lovely name, she wasn’t sure it quite reflected the woman wielding it though, somehow she had expected something edgier. Almost as if she could read her thoughts, she turned to face her, the boys sagging in relief in the background. Apologies of her own were dancing on her lips, before she smiled softly at her.

“Hello, I’m Erza Scarlet, please ignore Natsu and Gray, they both mean well, even if they do fight a lot”

Scarlet as in the blood of her enemies? And the other man was called Gray, that was nice to know. Erza suddenly held out a hand for her and she slowly took it, shaking it softly.

“Hello, I’m Lucy-” _ Don’t give them your surname! Father will find you! _“- I want to join this guild...I’m kinda used to weird so it’s ok”

Right, this was nothing compared to her everyday life, she could handle idiots and exhibitionists! Technically her dragon was both. Erza hummed in acknowledgement, nodding slightly.

“If you say so. Well if you've seen these two and still want to stay then you’ll fit in fine here”

“Indeed she will!”

A loud booming voice shook the room, she quickly turned to the entrance, surprised, and a little scared, to see a giant blocking the door. He was looking down at her and she felt herself back up, trying to get away from him. Erza’s hand landed on her shoulder, stopping her in her tracks

“It’s alright Lucy, that’s the guild master”

_ THAT’S THE GUILDMASTER? _

She didn’t mean to be rude but she was expecting someone a little…smaller? Still, her manners demanded she act accordingly. She stood straighter, looking him in the eye.

“Thank you master, I’ll do my best to live up to your expectations”

He laughed, loud and booming, as he slowly started to...shrink? Amazement and disbelief warred inside her as he got smaller and smaller, finally becoming a short, old man. He wore bright clothes, clearly not caring about the attention it brought. He was bent over, leaning on a walking stick, yet he still seemed powerful, strength seemed to lie in the air around him. His mustached face was much easier to see this close, grinning at her as he was. Startled as she was, it took a moment to realise he was talking to her. 

“Sorry, I couldn’t help myself. I’m Makarov, master of Fairytail, welcome to the family. Make sure she gets her mark Mira”

“Of course Master”

He accepted her? Just like that? No test or anything? No big quest? She couldn’t stop her grin, newfound energy surged through her, causing her to bounce on her feet. She almost ignored Erza, before deciding that guild business was now officially her business, mark or not.

“Why were you called Master? Was it something important?”

“Ah, yes it was Erza” He had everyone's attention as he slowly walked through the hall before jumping up onto the bar and sitting there. “The council seem to believe that a strange monster has made its home in our forest, one that could be a potential threat to us. They don’t know how long it has been there, only that it must be investigated. Of course, that task seems to fall to us”

Her elation plummeted, a cold dread overtook her. A monster in the forest? Loke was sleeping there! Well not there but...Images of the cave struck her, all those tunnels not yet explored. There could easily be a large, hideous creature lurking in the shadows, teeth and claws sharp and ready to strike a poor, unsuspecting slumbering dragon. At this moment it could be sneaking up on him leaping on him-

The others didn’t notice her paling and shivering form, naive to her panicked worrying.

“Will you send someone?”

“Of course, who want-”

“I’ll go!”

The yell escaped her before she could stop herself, not that she objected to the idea, she could run and warn Loke, they could get rid of this pest, while getting paid for it! Perfect! Determined she nodded, trying to ignore her new friends shocked expressions.

“Lucy, are you sure?” 

“It’s going to be dangerous”

“Alright Lucy! You took my advice”

“You beat that monster!”

Makarov jumped down from the bar, walking over to her. He stared up at her, seeming to examine her from the inside out. She tried to look as determined as she felt, she needed him to believe she could do this. After what felt like hours, but was really only a tense moment, he stepped back, smiling a smile filled with secrets.

“Well you better get going then”

The pink guild mark seemed to shine proudly on her hand. She couldn’t help but stare at it as she walked through the forest, slowly making a beeline for their cave, well she was trying to anyway.

“Lucy! I think the monster will be this way!”

“What makes you so sure flamebrain? It could be more the other way”

“Or Lucy could be right and it’s straight on?”

She silently groaned, turning to see the four who had opted to come with her. Erza had demanded she had company on her first mission, Natsu had volunteered, Gray had counter volunteered. The fighting went on as she got her guild mark, a thankfully painless affair, until Makarov had used his Master title to just lump them together as a group. She was incredibly fond of her new friends, but their discussions on where to go at every turn was really slowing down her progress. The temptation to just ditch them had played through her mind once or twice, but the guilt of them being attacked while she wasn’t there stopped her, she would not let her new friends get mauled to death. So it was with great reluctance that she turned to them, wanting them to at least agree on this.

“I’m thinking we explore the North first then follow the forest round, maybe we will find something of interest?” Like the cave, where that adorable dragon was snoozing. “Unless you guys have a better idea?”

“Nope!”

Should Natsu be so happy about that? Or should he look so proud? Thankfully Erza stepped up, taking her role as second in command very seriously.

“If you think that’s the best way we’ll follow you Lucy, it is your first mission after all, we don’t want to take choice away from you. We just want you to be safe.”

She calmed down, cooled off by her words, she was very good at this, she was probably the only thing in that guild that could keep Natsu and Gray from killing each other ...except perhaps the guild master. She hoped her gratefulness shone through as she turned to lead them forward. Just as she took another step, a loud crash rang through the forest, it sounded pretty close. They all stilled, ready to face whatever came out at them from the shadows. A large bounding came from in front of them, as if something large was charging at them. Her hand went to her whip, ready to strike, when it charged through the bushes.

Only to relax in relief when it was only a panting Loke, the dragon’s tail wagging wildly at having finally found her, he probably could smell her, knowing she had returned to the forest. The silly boy probably wanted to know all about her day and couldn’t wait to hear about it, he was so adorable. Relief also poured through her, since he looked unharmed, he hadn’t come face to face with the monster, an incredibly calming thought. 

No longer on edge, she moved to take a step forward, only for Natsu to grab her and pull her back, standing in front of her.

“Don’t panic Lucy, we’ve got this!”

Grabbing her was a terrible mistake, especially when she wasn’t expecting it. Loke immediately zeroed in on Natsu, spotting his tense pose as the threat it was. Combine that with the fact he had just pushed her away and she wasn’t surprised when he crouched low, snarling and showing his fangs. The others stood by Natsu, Erza drew her sword, pointing it straight at Loke. She was startled when Gray conjured an ice spear and Nastu’s hands burned with a powerful flame, the nicknames made sense now at least. For a moment she was startled, confused by the immediate hostility filled with distrust, it was normal to see a dragon-

_It wasn’t normal to see a dragon!_ _Terrible dragons were known to terrorise towns!_

She remembered her own initial fear, how long ago and distant that feeling was, they must be feeling that emotion. They must believe that her lovely dragon was here to burn them all, she had to put a stop to that, now!

She ducked between her team, ignoring their yells, racing ahead towards him, keeping herself between them, so neither could attack. She got close to Loke’s muzzle, then unceremoniously flicked it.

“Don’t threaten my new friends”

He was smart enough to realise the miscommunication, his eyes going from constricted and cruel to wide and happy. Though the dramatic dragon he was, he immediately grabbed his nose, whining loudly as he thrashed, making out like she had mortally wounded him. She rolled her eyes, riding out his complaints, turning her head slightly when she heard a gasp, seeing their shocked faces gave her a little bit of joy. Natsu was holding his own nose in fear.

“Wow Lucy, remind me to never be flicked by you”

She giggled, waving him off.

“Oh i’m not that strong, he’s just a big baby”

He moved his hands, lowering his head to snort at her, amused but not appreciating the insult. A laugh bubbled up inside her, relieved by the normalcy of their teasing.

Natsu seemed relaxed, grinning at her easily, but suspicion still hung around the others, like a dark cloud. Their postures were still stiff, but Erza had lowered her sword, that was something right? 

“You...You want to explain what's going on?”

She nodded, patting Loke’s nose and encouraging him to stand. 

“Alright, this is Lo-”

A small growl set everyone on edge, she glared up at him, confused. Did he want to be seen as bad? He raised himself to stand as tall as he could, his chest puffed out, his wings opened up. Beautiful stars sparkled, revealing the Leo constellation. He caught her eye and nodded towards his wings. Leo huh? alright then…

“The lovely Leo!” He roared loudly, flapping his wings in a show of power. “Sorry, he’s a bit of a show off”

He grinned toothily, owning the fact he was posing for them. There was a slight chuckle before Gray and Natsu held each other up as they laughed. A small smile twitched at Erza’s lips as she sheathed her sword. Her eyes darted to the two boys laughing at the now rightly offended dragon, before flicking back to hers.

“So he’s just like those two then?”

“In all the worse ways I imagine”

They shared a knowing chuckle, before her gaze turned serious, she walked up to them both, looking up at the large reptile.

“So, want to explain what he’s doing here?”

She shared a look with her dragon, he nuzzled her gently, letting her take the lead. He would follow her explanation, whatever it was. She stumbled over what to say, she hated to lie, but could she trust these people she met today with the whole truth? Her father no doubt had a large reward for her return, she couldn’t judge their character well enough to know they wouldn’t just hand her over. She wanted to believe they wouldn’t, her heart ached with the desire to spill everything, but she needed to be wary. If not for herself, then for him. A half truth will have to do.

She explained that they had lived together in a cave far from there in the mountains, when some strange men looking to earn some fame came to kill a dragon. They had found her instead and had attacked her (thankfully her bruises from where they had grabbed her corroborated with her story), she had managed to hold them off with a whip until Leo returned, charging in and scaring them off. They had claimed to return however, neither of them wanted to deal with the stress of potential attacks at all hours, so had moved.

“Oh so all the movement last night-”

“That was Leo moving all our stuff here yes”

They nodded in understanding and she was relieved.

“Still, you could have just told us this was the monster we were look-”

“Ah! We were hunting a monster! I forgot!” She caught Loke’s attention, staring into his deep eyes. “ You haven’t seen one have you?” He shook his head, making a small noise of confusion as she hugged his foot. “Thank goodness! I was so worried you were badly hurt...or worse”

He leaned down to nuzzle her, chittering in the hopes of comforting her. He would never get caught off guard by such a creature, especially not if it would upset her this way.

“As we were saying,why didn’t you tell us Leo was the monster? It would have saved a lot of time wandering around”

Dumbfounded was the only way to describe how she felt, it must have shown on her face since the others looked incredulous.

“Didn’t you think he might be a monster? He is a dragon!”

Anger boiled inside her at that harsh comment, stepping in front of Loke’s foot as if she could protect him.

“So what if he is? A dragons a dragon not a monster” The words Loke and monster couldn’t coexist together, not in her mind, it was far too difficult to put together. “This is the idiot who grieved and bawled like I was dying when I first got a cold in the mountains, he’s a baby, not a monster. I could never think of him that way”

The aforementioned baby huffed, not pleased by that comment, he looked away from her. But it was more to hide how happy he was inside that she didn’t see him as something terrible, then any real anger directed towards her. Erza noticed his bashful reaction and hummed in thought.

“I’m sorry Lucy, you’re right. Family’s family, regardless of who or what they are”

Family?...Yeah she could see Loke as some sort of dopey big brother, the idea made her smile. She was about to respond when Natsu cut in.

“Of course they are! Igneel’s not a monster either! He’s my father, it’s the same for you, right?”

There was a beat while his words sunk in before she burst out laughing, a deep rumbling beside her proved Loke was doing the same.

“My father? Gosh no! He’s a dear friend, besides we’ve only known each other ...wow it’s almost been half a year, time really goes by”

He’d finally calmed down enough to mumble an agreement, perplexing her friends.

“Wait, half a year?”

“You both seemed to get each others cues, or at the very least, you mostly understand each other”

Well, he never talked so understanding nonverbal communication was a must, that probably made them seem super close...or maybe they just were?

“It makes sense, me and Igneel trusted each other from day one!”

“Whose Igneel? Besides being your father I mean”

His eyes lit up at that question, Happy flew around him, both of them excited by the change in subject. 

“He’s the best dragon ever!”

“Yeah! He’s the fire dragon king! He taught me everything I know and his magic! It’s how I’m able to use fire dragon slayer magic. But…” He seemed to sombre up a little, the fire burning around him at the mention of his magic disappearing into smoke. “...He’s vanished, all the dragons have...except you, have you seen him?!”

Recognition seemed to flash in the dragon’s eyes, before becoming sad. He shook his head, starting to talk in that old language. Natsu listened intently as he seemed to stall and stutter his way through his sentences, no longer seeming as musical as they usually do, more jagged and awkward. She watched as Natsu’s shoulders slumped, Loke bowing his head apologetically at him.

“You don’t need to apologise Leo, It’s ok.” Then as though he understood everyone else’s confusion he explained. “Apparently he and the other celestial dragons have lived far from both humans and dragons for a long time. They have tried to form relationships with humans like their brethren did, but found that they and their powers were abused, so they left. They’ve kept to themselves and not worried about the affairs of others. Sometimes news makes its way to them, but he hasn’t heard the name of Igneel, or any other elemental dragon, in a long time.”

Shocked and startled, she tried to catch Loke’s eye, but he turned from her, seemingly genuinely ashamed he couldn’t help the ‘son’ of another dragon. This was all news to her, there were other dragons?! Did he go visit them? Why didn’t he take her?! Looking up at him, these would all be questions for later she decided, right now he needed a hug, so she gladly hugged his foot. For his part, Natsu beamed, clenching his fist in determination.

“Don’t worry! I’ll find him one day!”

“Aye sir we will!”

He looked down at their antics and grunted before allowing a small smile to appear on his muzzle. He nodded down at them, chirping brightly at them.

“Awww, you’re wishing them luck, aren't you?”

He chirped again, louder and happier and she grinned. 

“Doesn’t he speak English?”

“Nope”

“And you don’t understand dragon?”

“No I don’t”

There was a moment where they stared at her stunned, before Erza and Gray shook their heads, probably done with this whole situation. Natsu and Happy however, looked at her like she had just gotten a whole lot cooler.

“They have their own secret language Happy”

“So cool, will they teach us it?”

“I hope so!”

That happiness that seemed to be consistently there since she met those two, since she met Fairytail, flowed through her once more, resulting in a light laugh.

“Sorry, it’s between us two only”

Loke childishly stuck his tongue at the distraught pair, his wing relaxing and hovering beside her, in his best mimicry of an arm slung round her shoulder. Before there could be an argument, Erza coughed softly. 

“As nice as this all is, we should probably be getting back”

“Yeah…” Her hands curled into fists against his hard scales. “But what should we say?”

A simple shrug from Gray was her answer.

“Simple, the ‘monster’ is no longer a threat. That’s true right? Leo here isn’t about to hurt anyone”He stopped, waiting until Loke shook his head. “Well then, it’s settled.”

“Well, I think there’s something a bit weird going on here, but I can tell now isn’t the time to ask”

She was so thankful for Erza’s consideration that she almost hugged her, she held herself back however, unsure about how she felt about that kind of thing. Instead she moved over, patting Loke before she left, to stand close to her.

“Thank you”

“It’s alright, we all have our secrets, as long as they won’t harm anyone, I don’t mind you keeping them”

“They won’t, I promise”

“Good, then let’s get you your first reward”

“Right! Bye LEO!”

“SEE YA LATER!” 

Natsu and Happy enthusiastically waved to the bewildered dragon, while Gray and Erza’s were more subdued. He turned to her and whined, a high pitched noise that surprised them, but she naturally tuned out at this point.

“I’ll be back as soon as possible, is that alright everyone?” At their affirmations, she continued. “ I’ll be going into town a lot now, but I will always return to you, I promise”

He grumbled, not entirely satisfied with this new situation, but he grunted his goodbye nonetheless. She waved until she couldn’t see him anymore, following her new friends into the forest and back to town.

When she walked back a little later, her bag a little heavier with the weight of coins, she wasn’t surprised to find him laying where they had left him, staring in the direction she had gone. At her arrival his tail knocked down several trees in his excitement. She shook her head, amused and touched by his display. 

They walked home together and he finally got to hear all about her day, to his great joy. Though he was more joyful to learn about the small treasure she had earned, the sheer amount of pride that swirled within him at Lucy starting her own small horde couldn’t be described in human words. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for waiting! I know it was a while, but hey we have some development and story so yay?


	9. A dragon speaks

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Loke gives Lucy a happy surprise.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Birthday to me! To celebrate here is my gift from me to me! It's quite the fluffy chapter! Though I will warn you that you may get sick of the word important, Loke really believes it suits Lucy.

Since that first job she ended up going to Fairytail on most days, saving the weekends for time spent solely with Loke, much to his pleasure. She was starting to do jobs on the regular, as she trained with her new team to prove what she could do and show her place in it. The money she was bringing back wasn’t huge, since it was divided between them, but with no real worries about rent or food, that didn’t bother her.

What did bother her, or at least intrigue her, was that her dragon had started flying off somewhere every morning after he wished her a good day. He would come back in the afternoon but it still piqued her interest, just what was he doing?

Thinking about her dragon made the trip home go quicker. She was walking into their cave when suddenly a loud voice stopped her.

“Hello Lucy! Welcome home!”

She froze, she hadn’t been expecting company, actually not someone so loud. She panicky looked around the cave but could only spot her dragon, who was currently grinning at her with a mischievous smile on his face. It took a moment for her to and two together, but she finally realised her dragon had spoken to her. His voice was gruff, vocal cords not used to the words currently coming out of his mouth, he would probably sound smoother in time, but right now she was too surprised to think about that.

“You spoke? Loke, you’re talking?!”

He jumped, wings flapping, excited that she had noticed.

“Yes Lucy! Loke learning to talk human! Wanted to surprise Lucy! Lucy surprised?”

There was a beat before she charged forward, jumping to hold and hug his front left arm. Pride burst up and outward, resulting in a large grin on her face, her dragon was so smart!

“Yes I'm surprised, but it’s a good shock, is this what you’ve been up to lately?”

He nodded vigorously, his right paw reaching over to gently hug her against him.

“Want to talk Lucy! Lucy friends too! Won’t make them sad now!”

“You didn’t upset them to begin with, it was a misunderstanding Loke”

“No more! Loke talk now!”

Well he had a point, it would be easier to prove Loke wasn’t a threat if he could communicate that...but still, she’d rather him not see anyone else.

“How well can you talk Loke?”

“Not great yet but couldn’t wait. Wanted Lucy to hear”

His tail swung madly as he smiled toothily down at her, his eyes were crinkled with joy and she couldn’t help but be swept along with him. 

“I’m glad, I want to hear your progress, I want to support you while you learn, hopefully soon we will be able to have really good and long talks. We could chat about anything, if you want you could explain more about you?”

He shifted, huffing but also uncertain, he couldn’t keep her gaze.

“Want to talk about Lucy not Loke. Lucy good, Loke can talk about story, about old house, want that”

He wanted to talk about those things? Hadn’t he already listened to her go on and on about her father? Wasn’t he sick of hearing her gush about all her story plans? Apparently not though, in all fairness, it’s not like he had been able to give his own opinion before, not properly. A lot of the time she had to guess his meaning, not always completely sure of how close she was, perhaps this would lead to a proper discussion about what she loved and enjoyed, about what they both enjoyed, she wouldn’t mind that.

“I don’t mind talking about me or anything you want to discuss, but I want to learn more about you too”

He paused, unsure of how to respond before finally speaking up.

“Ok...Lucy first”

“Deal, besides I don’t want to learn only about you. You mentioned other dragons to Natsu, I’d like to know about them...perhaps even meet them.”

She couldn’t curb her enthusiasm at the very idea, but he seemed reluctant, a visible cringe on his lips as he looked away, she frowned at his reaction.

“Is that not a good idea?”

“Um” He muttered in his language, it felt very much like he was cursing. “Some good, others...umm”

“Are they bad dragons?”

“No!” His yell rocked the cave, seemingly upset that she had called them that. “Others...different?” He let out a loud, defeated sigh. “Sorry”

She moved back to let him slump into a lying position, annoyed with himself. Sh reached up and he moved his head unconsciously, ducking down to let her pet his nose.

“it’s alright, i’m guessing you mean they’re a little eccentric”

He hummed in affirmation, staring out of the cave, seeing something in his mind's eye, perhaps reminiscing about his friends. Her heart pange from guilt, did he miss them? Did she stop him from visiting them?

“Ya know, you’re not exactly normal. I don’t mind crazy, they’re free to visit, I want to meet them.”

“...Ok. Lucy meet others” He nodded multiple times, muttering to himself, almost like he was convincing himself it was a good idea. “Not all together, no good, too um...eck...ecksen...”

He frowned as he struggled to form the new word, he was trying his best, she had to help him.

“Eccentric?”

“Yes...Sorry. Hard to speak human...too many words”

She opened her arms and coaxed him into a cuddle, hugging his nose as tightly as she could. Understanding and speaking English are two very different things.

“It’s ok Loke, you’ll get it in time, I'm proud of how much you’ve learnt already”

“Lucy proud of Loke?”

She swore for a moment he almost sounded awed, he really couldn’t be doing too bad if he could put emotion into his loud voice.

“Yes I am you big goober”

He started to vibrate underneath her and she wasn’t overly surprised to find his tail thrashing wildly behind him, his claws started to knead the ground in glee, as he closed his eyes and nuzzled her. 

It was moments like this, in which they both just enjoyed being together, that really cemented him in her heart. He was her best friend, a brother, someone to care for and be cared for back. She felt appalled when he had been labelled a monster, a ghost of that feeling surging through her now, making her defensive. Who could ever look at this soft idiot currently enjoying nose rubs and think monster? The entire conversation came back to her, reminding her of something that had struck her as odd in the moment, but had been forgotten about in all the commotion afterwards. She pushed back, ignoring his whine at the loss of her touch. He opened her eyes, staring into hers in a silent question.

“Loke...why did you stop me from calling you that in front of the others? Why do you want them to call you Leo but not me?”

He paused, tilting his head in confusion and she belatedly realised he might not be able to explain that just yet. She was about to apologise when he spoke.

“Lucy name for Leo. Hers, ours! Not others. Loke our name only”

“But why?”

He whined before growling, upset with himself. Sharp claws fidgeting with rocks underneath him as he tried to figure out a way to explain with his limited vocabulary. He gave up, puffing air out of his nose in frustration. He nudged her, murmuring her name over and over, she wondered if she looked as incredulous as she felt. 

“Wait, is it really because  _ I _ gave you the name? You want this to be our little secret? Well I can accept that I guess, but, for the sake of fairness, you need to come up with your own name for me”

His wings shot up as he looked at her in intense surprise.

“Lucy let Loke name Lucy?”

“Yeah sure, give me whatever nickname you like”

He bounded up, stepping away before bouncing on his feet. He started walking in a circle, head down in concentration, rapidly firing through words in his own language. She watched the display with some amusement, he almost looked to be chasing his own tail, when he suddenly stopped, turning to her excitedly.

“Lucy! How is this?!” 

He then spoke in dragon, that lovely soft melody rushed over her, she was once more reminded of singing, but with something magical entwined with the song. There was joy in the air as he spoke it, so she figured it had to be a good word, she could accept it. It seemed fair to her, her nickname was in English, his should be in dragon. She beamed up at him, letting the magic of the moment wrap her up safely.

“I love it Loke, I’d be honoured if you called me something in your language, please, go right ahead”

He jumped, wings flapping but not lifting him, as he let out a roar of happiness. He repeated the word over and over, creating a joyful melody as he bounced around, trying his best to be close to her but not squash her. He circled her once, before leaning down to nuzzle her, the word once more vibrating between them, but this close it actually made her giggle. She would have to learn what it meant when he could translate it for her. It must be a great word, she almost felt unsure, but he would never give her a lofty title, not for good reason anyway.

“Silly dragon, acting like i’m someone important-”

She was cut off by him freezing, eyes expanding as he stared at her, his grin somehow widening, showing off more fangs. 

“Say again Lucy!”

“Say what again?”

“Im-Im-”

“Important?”

“Yes! Im-Impor-”

“Im-por-tant. Important. Like that Loke, you try.”

“Im-por-tant, important. IMPORTANT!” His head and wings raised triumphantly as finally he got his lips to pronounce the word correctly. “Lucy important to Loke. Want to know word. Lucy say before, long ago. Loke like word. Good word, Lucy word. Lucy important”

“You mean, when I said we’d be important to each other? You remember that? Remembered the word’s meaning? Loke i’m touched, thank you. You’re important to me too”

In hindsight, she would not have said that if she had known had energetic it would make him, he cheered as he once more made a circuit of the cavern acting like a complete buffoon, but she laughed along and ended up joining him in his little run around, so who was the bigger idiot really? They eventually lost steam, after having chased each other around the cavern, they laid together, him stretched out while she laid back against his side. Their laughter slowly died as they calmed down, exuberance dying off as they caught their breath. A wing lowered came over her, shielding her as he got comfortable. She stared up at the makeshift night sky, slowly relaxing. as she stilled, her brain reminded her of one little thing.

“Hey Loke?”

“Yes Lucy?’’

“Who’s teaching you to talk?”

“Other dragon. Good with human words”

“Do you think they’re in my book too?”

He shrugged noncommittally, which wasn’t enough of an answer to satisfy her. She pushed away his wing, ignoring his loud grumbling, as she stood up. He continued to lay down, but raise his head up, watching her disapprovingly as she made her way to her bookshelf, she quickly grabbed the astrology book and ran back to him, not wanting to keep the grouchy dragon waiting. He opened his left palm, allowing her to sit on his hand as she opened the book.

“Tell me if any look familiar ok? I’m hoping that other dragon also has one of these marks on them”

He hummed his agreement, not pleased by this change in topic, but willing to follow her whims. She flipped through the pages, holding u the book and showing him multiple constellations until he finally stopped her.

“That one Lucy!”

She turned the book back to face her, examining the stars strewn across the page. Finally, she took notice of the constellations name.

“Capricorn, is that right?”

“Yes Lucy”

He was curt with her, but his right claw was already trying to knock the book away, she swatted at him and sighed.

“Alright, Mr Jealous, I just want to thank the dragon helping you that’s all, it’s a kind thing to do. Can Capricorn visit? Just for that?”

“....Ok...but Lucy with Loke! Only Loke!”

“I...I’m not going to leave you for another dragon, you’re overthinking things”

“Lucy try before. Try to go away. Ca-Cap...Ca-Capri...Better than Loke at speaking, Lucy leave for better dragon”

The accusation hurt a little bit, but wasn’t uncalled for, she had tried to run away. In fact, she still thought it was best for her to leave.

“That was to keep you safe from my father, I wasn’t about to run to a different dragon, the only dragon I want to stay with is you Loke, I promise. If it were possible, I'd stay forever”

“It is! Stay with Loke Lucy!”

“Do you really not care about how unorthodox or dangerous this is?”

“No!”

A simple response, it surprised her, but it was full of honesty. How did he switch so violently from overthinking to not thinking at all? He could get really hurt, he knew that right? Had he been trying to say this before? Maybe him learning to talk wasn’t a completely great idea, not if he could actually argue against his own safety. She groaned, slumping a little, she got the feeling that this was a fight she was going to lose.

“Lucy...Lucy want to leave Loke? Lucy can leave…” 

If she could then why did he look like he was about to cry?! How can a dragon pull of kitty cat eyes?! This was unfair and- oh who was she kidding?

“No, I want to stay, especially with how close we’ve gotten, and all the effort you’ve put in for me, but you realise you could be hurt, or worse, right? I need to know that you’re aware of that”

“Loke want Lucy to stay. Other things not important. Not to Loke. When Loke better at talking, Loke will tell Lucy how important. But all Loke can say is Lucy important, most important!”

“Even more than treasure? Than gold or silver? They could end up taken away from you, you know?”

“Yes! Most important Lucy! _Not! Other! Things!_”

He really liked his new word didn’t he? Still, he seemed to feel so strongly about it, maybe she could find a way to stay? Maybe, in time, she could trust her new friends with the full truth? They could help too perhaps? There wasn’t a whole lot of planning going on, the uncertainty was primed to swallow her up and leave her in a spirling despair, but, perhaps, there was an eternal happiness here for her, if she was willing to work towards grasping it. 

“Alright! You win you big idiot...I promise to stay here with you, but you’re not allowed to regret this ok? I think that would hurt worse than anything”

His tears dried up as he beamed at her, she felt his claws flex underneath her, like he was tempted to cuddle her. That was one thing they both did regret, they couldn’t really fully hold the other, still they did the best they could. He seemed appeased now, now that there was no threat of her leaving. 

“Loke get Capri”

“Capri…? Oh! Capricorn! Yes please!”

She jumped off his hand, allowing him to stand. He shook himself before stretching his arms and wings, waking up his tired body. He padded over to the entrance, she slowly followed behind him, he looked back to make sure she was. 

“Bye Lucy! Be back soon!”

“Goodbye Loke, stay safe!”

She waved as he flew away somewhere strange to her. She hoped he came back soon, so that he did stay safe, and so that she could meet this new dragon. If she was going to stay here permanently, which was seeming to be more and more likely, not that she actually minded, then she wanted to meet his friends, one by one if she had to.

Capricorn seemed like a great place to start, she couldn’t wait.


	10. The goat visits

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Capricorn comes round for a little chat and Lucy learns more about her friend.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok, i'll admit it, Pokemon shield has my full attention right now, i'll get back to writing proper soon I promise.

It took a good while before Loke returned, she had sat by the edge of the cave, watching as the sun started to set behind the trees, when she finally heard a loud rustle through the forest. She quickly stood up, eager to greet Loke, when a strange new dragon appeared through the brush. There was a tense moment of panic before Loke followed after and she relaxed, allowing her to look over this new dragon. 

He stood a head taller than Loke, which probably meant it was a good thing they had changed caves. He wasn’t as thin as her dragon, not as streamlined, there was bulk on his legs and shoulders, he could probably take other dragons in a fight, but he still didn’t seem as overly muscled as the dragons in storybooks either. He was pure white and seemed to have a layer of fur all over his body, unlike Loke whose only fur was his mane and on the tip of his tail. His tail was shorter than Loke’s and also incredibly fluffy. He had two black, curved horns at the top of his head and black circles around his eyes. Her innate curiosity must have showed because he stretched out his wings, revealing his constellation, outlined by furry black ridges on his wings.

He smiled kindly at her, allowing her to get a little closer to feel his fur, it was short and bristley to the touch. It was fascinating to not really be able to feel his scales underneath, but she must have been giving him too much attention, since Loke, not so lightly, nudged her with his nose.

“Lucy! Say hello to Loke!”

“Right, right, sorry” She giggled as she moved from their guest over to him, patting his nose and hugging him. “Welcome home Loke”

He purred for her, sated by her affection, she couldn’t help but feel the other’s amused glance at her back.

“Why Leo, are you a dragon, or a kitty cat?”

He spoke confidently and clearly, a stark difference to Loke’s stammering and stuttering. The dragon in question took offence, huffing and nuzzling his head further into her arms. He muttered something in their shared language, causing their guest to laugh.

“Right, sorry, where are my manners? I am Capricorn young miss, it’s a pleasure to meet you”

He bowed his head low in greeting, she responded automatically and without thought, she let go of Loke to courtesy low to the dragon. 

“Pleased to meet you Capricorn, I’m Lucy. I wanted to thank you for teaching Loke to speak, it’s incredibly kind of you”

He let out a pleased noise, looking down approvingly at her.

“I’ve heard much about you from our friend here, it seems the praise was warranted. It’s refreshing to see a human with such good manners”

She found herself flustering under his praise, especially when she had forgotten rule number one of being a good host, inviting the guest inside.

“Thank you, would you like to come in? It will be nicer to talk inside.”

“I would love to”

He strolled past the both of them, somehow poised and dignified as he walked. Her focus shifted to the other dragon, currently nuzzling her.

“You talk about me?”

“Yes! Tell how important Lucy is!”

She groaned, embarrassed at the idea of him bragging to other dragons about her.

“I bet you exaggerate don’t you?”

“No!”

He shook his head vigorously and she sighed, not willing to face this feeling of mortification right now, she walked in after Capricorn, Loke following behind her. 

“A nice cave you have here, I see you’ve made it your own”

“Thank you Capricorn, do you need anything?”

“No, I'm alright, thank you”

He picked a spot in the large cavern and laid down, keeping a respectful distance away from their ‘hoards’. Loke laid opposite, facing him and Lucy took that as a cue to sit by him. 

“So, I see you have questions to ask me, feel free to start”

“Are you sure? I don’t want to be rude”

“Go right ahead little lady”

She looked up at her dragon who shrugged, he was happy to follow her lead, besides, he liked Lucy’s voice. Talking with Capricorn meant he would hear more of it so he didn’t care.

“Well, do you mind me asking how it is that you can talk?”

He chuckled deeply before smiling at her.

“Getting right to it are we? Well not all Celestial dragons gave up on human languages after we were abused by them. So for some of us, only a quick refresher is needed, while for others, like our friend Leo, they gave it up long ago. You forget what you don’t use, so he has to learn it all over again, but I don’t mind, I quite enjoy teaching the others”

She let all this new information sink in, trying her best to keep her thoughts straight.

“That makes sense...Wait, you said languages?”

He nodded and puffed out his chest, apparently incredibly proud of himself.

“Yes, I can speak and read many of your human languages, it helps me with my reading”

“Your reading?”

“I find the human written word fascinating, my hoard is a vast selection of books from all over the world. Dragons just haven’t replicated that way with words humans have, so learning all your languages is a must.”

His eyes flickered to her bookshelf, examining them even from that distance. A small warning growl from Loke brought his attention back to them.

“Sorry, I lost myself there”

“It’s alright? I’m not sure anything there would interest you anyway”

He hummed, unconvinced by her words. Under Loke’s glare he trained his gaze onto her, though his eyes did sometimes flicker back to her bookcase.

“Right, where were we?”

She frowned at their interaction, surprised that little actions from Loke kept him in line, weren’t dragons more prideful than that?

“You take Loke’s cues pretty well, is that just you being respectful?”

“No, well yes, but hasn’t he told you? Leo is our leader, I follow him out of respect for that, and our long friendship, more than anything else.”

Their leader? She turned her head up to look at him quizzingly, but he just rolled his eyes and huffed. Still, the topic had changed to one she wanted, she needed to know more about her dragon.

“No, he doesn’t talk much about himself, maybe you could tell me more about him?”

He looked above her to Loke, once more communicating with him with silent looks, it frustrated her a little that she was being kept out of everything. After a moment, he responded to her.

“There’s not much to say, Leo has been the leader of our group for as long as I can remember, he’s not our king, he just helps keep us in check. It was under his orders that we left to the mountains, he was tired of seeing violence and abuse, so we left. It was the best idea at the time...but perhaps you’ve changed your mind now Leo?”

The only word she could use to describe his expression was discomfort, extreme discomfort. He shifted beside her, fidgeting the ground with his claws.

“Lucy different...not sure others”

“What about my friends at Fairytail? You seemed to get along with them”

“Different too...some good maybe”

“But that’s not enough for you to recommend we show ourselves again, I understand Leo”

He relaxed again, sighing in relief, she was about to argue against his superstition when she remembered how they met. Dragons were still regularly seen as monsters, they were hunted, like Loke was when he dared to leave his home. Even her new team had almost attacked him, if the whole guild had been there, it could have been much worse than it was. She gently patted his arm, he was only trying to protect everyone. 

“I get it, after all, we didn’t meet in the best circumstances. Perhaps we should talk about something nicer? Maybe about something you like?”

He visibly brightened, nuzzling her gently.

“Lucy! Talk about Lucy!”

“I was thinking more about something else…”

“Well tell me what you do know about him Lucy, I'll expand from there”

She looked up at her dragon, racking her brain for everything she knew, or at least believed. She was surprised by how much wasn’t exactly concrete.

“Well, most of the stuff I know is based on what I’ve seen, so a lot of it is his personality. I know he’s brave, he’s incredibly caring and loving, which, when combined together, has made him put himself in danger for me. So I guess he’s self sacrificing in some way. He’s playful and enjoys a good joke, but can be incredibly serious if the moment calls for it. He can actually be quite handy and helpful when he’s not messing around. Despite that, he is an idiot, some of the things he’s done make me question how he lived this long”

The soft purring that had been rumbling through her stopped abruptly, turning into a huff of air that blew against her, she couldn’t help but let out a small giggle at his childish behaviour. 

“I sometimes wonder that myself lady Lucy”

He let out an exaggerated gasp, upset at this clear betrayal. But he still stuck close to her, his head never really leaving her side.

“See? Absolute goofball. But when it comes to more solid stuff...I know he hates water, to the point he will run from me if I’m soaking. He doesn’t use fire like other dragons, instead he has this powerful beam of light and energy. He can make little balls of light too, they’re super cute” She moved to ask Loke to show him, but before she could get even a syllable out, he was already opening his mouth and creating a small light ball. He gently pushed it towards her and it came to rest above her lap. “Thanks Loke, like this, it’s so cool, and helpful for when the nights get cold and dark...The only other thing I can think of at the moment is his hoard, he likes silver and gold stuff, any other colour gets immediately tossed.” 

She faced Capricorn, ready to learn more, when she was surprised by his soft expression, he seemed amused by them. She shifted uncomfortably under his gaze.

“What?”

“Nothing...though, while your right about the colours, it’s more the shine he likes. Silver and gold seem to shine in just the right way to attract him and you’ll find his hoard is full of objects like that, things that completely shine all the way through. Things that only half shine in the way he wants also get discarded, regardless of their colour. I’m surprised you know even that though, and that his hoard is right next to yours.”

The light floated up before vanishing, the cave once more lit up by natural light.

“Well, at first I wasn’t allowed near it, but he eventually changed his mind. He allowed me to touch his things, so I’m trying to be respectful of them. I think him giving me that dress really helped him make his mind up”

“A dress? It wouldn’t happen to be a gold one with silver stars would it?”

“Yeah, that’s the one! He absolutely adored me in it. I never hear him purr as much as in those rare occasions I put it on”

“Lucy shine”

“Awww, thank you Loke”

She hugged his nose, before stretching to gently rub his cheeks and under his chin. He reverted back to chirping, relaxing under her touch.

“Got a new centrepiece have you old friend? No i suppose that’s a bit rude a label, definitely your most important treasure though hmmm?”

Through her confusion she heard him muttering under his breath in response. He nudged her gently, calling her by her nickname. She may not know his language, but she could recognise that lovely sound anywhere.

“I wish I knew what that meant, or that I could say it back”

“Your vocal cords aren’t made to handle our language, we understand that you can't speak it. But as for what that means, it’s a little tricky. In our language one word can have many meanings, it’s all down to the sentence and tone it’s spoken in. While that is true for yours, you’ll find one word for us can be translated directly into many words in your language. For example, his nickname for you could be translated into adoration or the feeling of being cherished. It can mean something that’s prized or valuable to the particular dragon, like Leo’s shiny things and my books. In calling someone else it though, it would be like one of your human pet names. I don’t know if you call each other precious or treasure, but that would be the closest comparison I could make” 

She was mortified about halfway through his explanation, but by the end she was blushing darkly. She looked firmly at her knees, despite Loke’s aggressive nuzzling and purring. She was eventually able to breathe her way through her embarrassment, finally peeking up at his grinning face, he was such an adorable moron.

“I can see why it’s such a cheerful sound now...Your nickname is so much nicer than mine huh? Mine’s a playful jab at the fact you cause trouble, while you’re there calling me something sweet”

“Lo-” A small waning growl from her dragon, she almost gave him a light tap to shut him up, but Capricorn seemed to understand. “Leo’s nickname is an insult?” 

“Not really, but it was inspired by a very famous trickster. So as not to get the two confused, I’d write his name with an e not an i, if I was ever asked to spell it”

“A very appropriate name then”

“I’m not sure...not if his is so kind...Don’t you want something different Loke?”

He shook his head quickly, desperate to object to such a horrible idea.

“Loke love it, Loke best name. Lucy name for Loke, it best”

“Ok, ok, I get it, but can’t Capricorn call you it? I would have thought that at least your dragon friends-”

“No!”

His gruff voice startled her, suddenly serious.

“Why?”

“I can answer that, but first, when exactly did you give Leo that nickname?”

“Oh, it was right after I met him”

He looked astonished, she couldn’t quite fathom why. After a while he shook his head, bemused with her answer.

“You humans constantly fascinate me. Dragons aren’t as quick to make important or emotional decisions as humans are, this can mean it takes us a while to all agree on a course of action, or even to make fulfilling relationships with each other. I suppose humans don’t really have the years to move slowly. Of course we can both can be driven by instinct in crucial moments, but that's where the parallel ends.”

“No offence, but that doesn’t seem quite right. Natsu said he and Igneel were friends immediately”

“Yes, the dragon children and their adopted parents, that still perplexes me, I’m unable to figure out the larger motive behind it”

She was confused by what he was implying, did there need to be a reason?

“Perhaps they just wanted to care for orphans?”

“Maybe, Igneel was impulsive, especially for a dragon, but even he thought things through...It’s an exception that can bother me another day, we have strayed off topic. A dragon wouldn’t give another a nickname right off the bat like that, to name him and befriend him straight away, you went against our usual behaviours.”

“I had to call him something! I couldn’t call the one who saved me from being my fathers perfect business deal, from having my life bartered away for more money and power, a monster, or just dragon,or,or... or it! He needed a name, he was my friend!” 

A loud chirp alerted her to Loke’s presence, but it wasn’t enough warning to prepare her for being picked up and nuzzled, a very loud and deep purr vibrating through him and into her. He was so unabashedly happy, over such a small thing! She just managed to stop him licking her, when she caught Capricorn laughing.

“But you see! There lies the difference between our two species, dragon's plan, we have the years to spend waiting for the right moment, even the celestial dragons weren’t all friends from the start and we haven’t all nicknamed each other, only the strongest bonds in our group have. While there are impulsive, playful or wilful dragons, they are the exception, not the rule. Only a humans spontaneous nature could see a beast a hundred times their own size and think of them as a friend. The name is so special because of that, yours is a quickly made bond, but I wouldn’t doubt its strength for a moment. The fact that Leo here made friends with you so quickly, then took less than a year to name you himself, is something incredibly rare Miss Lucy, you should find some pride in that.”

He nodded, his explanation over, not that she saw it. She was curled up in Loke’s palm, completely done with her dragon and his big heart. Of course she’d helped the one dragon who was all cuddly and lovey dovey, of course she had. Not that she'd have him any other way. He gently nudged her, letting out an inquisitive whine.

“Lucy ok? Not sad?”

She responded with a hug that caught him off guard, holding him and squeezing as tightly as she could, trying to pour out all this overwhelming affection.

“No i’m fine you big dork. I didn’t realise this was such a big deal, thank you so much.”

“Loke unsure first. Lucy human. But Lucy different. Lucy help Loke. Lucy kind to Loke. Talk, play, listen. Loke happy with Lucy, Lucy best human friend. Hard not to like”

“You’re hard to not like too. I’ll admit, you did scare me at first, especially when you got angry with me that first day.” She felt him shift, uncomfortable with his own past behaviour. “But I know now why you did it, you apologised to me and we started again. We’ve gotten closer ever since, right buddy? I’m not afraid anymore and you’re not wary of me.”

“Well, I suppose you can't say dragons aren’t passionate. When we finally give ourselves to something, its fully and without hesitation. Like our treasure hoards, or the bonds that bind us to each other. We are loyal and will protect them. You have yourself a very powerful dragon there”

She beamed up at him, glad someone saw his potential like she did.

“I have a very powerful friend...maybe he’s rubbing off on me, I keep calling him mine in my head”

In the following silence you could hear a pin drop, as both dragons gawked at her. She flustered under their gazes, fidgeting slightly with the hem of her skirt.

“I know it’s a weird thing to think, I’m sorry if that upsets you Loke”

He merely kept staring at her, but he seemed more awed than disgusted.

“My Lucy? Lucy stay forever? Loke’s human? No other dragon?!”

Excitement was slowly bubbling up inside him as he twitched slightly, waiting for her response with bated breath. She had already decided to live with him, but she had already underestimated the importance of words and actions to dragons before, it was best not to make the same mistake twice.

“Capricorn, what do dragons mean when they someone is theirs?”

“Well usually you wouldn't say that about another dragon unless you were incredibly close, dragons usually only claim possession over objects. However, In this particular context? I believe Leo merely wishes for you to live with him”

“I mean, I am already. I may find someone though, someone I love with all my heart, I will want to be with them, I will be theirs”

“Lucy other humans maybe. But only Loke’s. Only dragon”

“....I get it, you want our friendship to be unique, that I don’t go living with or being best friends with other dragons, that's very controlling of you Loke”

He shook his head, panicked now as he rambled in his own language, his genuine fear almost made her feel guilty for teasing him.

“I get it though, you’re a dragon, you’re a little possessive...I also know you wouldn’t stop me being friends with other dragons, that you would encourage me even to spend days out with them. No, what you really want, is that I end the day here with you if I can. That our friendship remains the strongest and that I won’t leave you for them. I didn’t realise dragons could also have abandonment issues.” He murmured in response, looking rather uncomfortable. “But you don’t need to worry. Even if I do get married or find a new home out there, I will never forget you. I would always come to visit you Loke, because you’re my best friend. You’re my dragon, my dear, sweet, silly Loke. I wouldn’t want it any other way”

His laughter was worth the speech, even if it was a little awkward to spill out her heart like that. He held her close to his cheek, humming in contentment when she hugged him. They stayed like that, oblivious to their company, as he murmured compliments in his own language. She was alarmed to find his cheek was suddenly wet, she looked up to find he was softly crying.

“Loke, what’s wrong?”

“Loke want to hug his Lucy. Hold Lucy closer. Can’t, too big. Hurt Lucy.”

He was crying because he couldn’t be affectionate enough? She could understand, the urge to hold and keep safe was also a human feeling after all. Having a surging heart, but not being able to do anything with that affection upsets and hurts. She patted him gently.

“It’s ok Loke, I know you care. This is enough”

He huffed, whining like he wasn’t convinced. He sagged a little, his wings dragging down.

“Humans lucky, Loke can’t hug others.”

He placed her down, laying down despondent, he sighed. She patted him gently, looking over to Capricorn to help her.

“It is a shame we can't be physically affectionate with humans. Dragons are able to be more touchy with each other, we can cuddle with our wings, hold each others hands or twist our tails together, relaxing against each other isn’t uncommon as full body contact is pleasant, even for us. I can understand why he would be upset about not being able to do that with a human friend.” 

She hummed, looking back to her friend, before looking up to him.

“We’re going to need to come up with something aren’t we?”

“I fear so, i’m sure you will be ok, you seem rather intelligent”

“Thank you, so do you. I’m glad you’re Loke’s friend, he needs someone like you in his life. I’m sorry we didn’t talk more about you, but I think we need some time alone”

“I understand my dear, I’m glad you’re his friend too. I’ll tell the others the hype was well justified, maybe you’ll get more visits in the future”

“If they’re as pleasant as you, I’ll be happy to have them here”

She was surprised by his loud laughter, as he almost broke into tears.

“Oh, it will definitely be fun i’m sure, though pleasant and calm probably wouldn’t describe them”

She felt a shudder down her spine, a sudden terrible cold feeling shook her as he left, giggling to himself. Her stomach plummeted as she realised maybe Loke was right, maybe the others were a bit different. As if he had read her mind, he whined, looking at her with large pupils, his tail dragged slowly over the ground behind him. He rested his head on his claws, before tilting his head towards his side. She took the invitation, walking over to relax against his side.

“If I had known this was so relaxing for you, I would have started laying with you sooner, and I would do it more often”

“Loke knows Lucy”

“We’ll work this out, I promise. I didn’t realise dragons were so touch starved, but i guess you guys do go all in. So when you’re affectionate. You’re _ affectionate. _So, in the meantime, how about I lay with you instead of going to bed?_” _

He gave a hum of approval as he curled tighter, trying to get as much of his body close to her as possible. This would have to do for now, but she’d think of something, he deserved that much.


	11. A bull causes a mess....

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It turns out not all of Loke's dragon friends are classy individuals, some even have a tendency to leave a mess wherever they go.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Back at it again with these dragos and plot wooo. Next chapter will be lighter and another new friend. Then I'm thinking of going back to oneshots about their days to lighten up the fic. Or will that ruin the story?

It was another slow day in their cave, a day she could really appreciate. The weekend was here, which meant two full days of exploring the different tunnels and spending time with Loke. She had recently found a tunnel that had lead to a small clearing with a natural pond, she was glad she didn’t have to go to town to wash herself or her clothes anymore, though her dragon stayed far away from it.

She had filled a bucket with water from that pond and was currently cleaning his treasure. It was something to do while Loke went hunting and it kept his treasure nice and shiny. He had been pleasantly surprised when his old treasure reflected more light than usual, which motivated her to keep this up. His happy smile was worth the elbow grease.

While she was cleaning, she was startled by a strong vibration and a crash, suggesting a dragon had landed in the cave.

_ Huh, that’s strange, it’s not like Loke to be this early. _

Worried something had happened to him she quickly stood up dropping an old cloth but keeping the coins in her other hand, if those got muddy he would just be more upset. However, she almost did drop them in her surprise, that definitely wasn’t Loke!

A strange dragon was eyeing up the cavern, examining it and seeming to approve of it. He was shorter than Loke, but he was built sturdier, he was stocky, chest and legs bulging with muscles. He was white with black spots on his smooth scales, the only hair on him was a black tuft on the end of a long tail. He had sharp black claws, and short, black horns on the top of his head, they reminded her of a bull’s horns she had seen in a book. Strangely, he wore a gold ring in his nostrils, she hadn’t realised they made jewelry big enough for dragons to wear.

He came deeper into the cavern, sniffing the air, when he suddenly spotted her. He grinned down at her, sharp fangs on display, coming closer to her. She eyed her whip far off to the side, but truthfully, she was frozen in fear

“Well, what do we have here? A brave human thief trying to make off with a dragon’s treasure?”

“I’m not-’

Her objection was cut off as, with surprising speed, he swiped at her, catching her completely off guard. He had her now, holding her tightly in one claw as he brought her close to his face, examining her carefully.

“You are a beautiful one. How about staying with me?”

He beamed at her, like his offer was one worth considering, well sucks to be him but she already had a dragon! She kicked out fruitlessly, stubbornly struggling in his hold. To her increased frustration, he laughed. She was about to start yelling at him, when a loud roar shook through the cave. She relaxed, she could recognise that voice anywhere and, just as she suspected, it was soon followed by Loke charging into the cavern.

He quickly caught sight of this strange dragon and hissed, wings raised and back curved as he tried to be as threatening as possible. She was surprised by how calm this other dragon was, he didn’t seem to feel threatened at all.

“Chill Leo, I’ve caught the little minx who was stealing your treasure. But instead of punishing her, may I take her home? She’s really feisty. I think she’d be great company.”

The hissing got worse, she cringed as it bled into her brain, making her feel uncomfortable. Loke’s fangs were bared as he responded.

“Let go of Lucy. Let go of Lucy right now!”

“This is the Lucy you talk about? Huh, I thought she’d be bigger. What with the way you went on and on, I was expecting a bit more.”

He shrugged, moving to set her down, but his movements were too slow. When she was a foot above the ground, Loke had charged, running straight to the other dragon and tackling him. She was unceremoniously dropped to the ground, letting out a few choice curses as the pain shot through her body. There was nothing she could do but stare up and watch as they started to scuffle. Claws and teeth only just missing their target as they swiped and snapped at each other as they circled, neither wanting to get too close. Then, seemingly at the same time, they decided to rush the other, their hard skulls met in the middle and she flinched, that must have hurt. Yet, they mustn’t have felt it, because they both started pushing, growling as they tried to tip the other. The new dragon had the clear physical strength advantage, slowly pushing Loke back. She froze, terrified that he was about to lose.

“Come on Loke, You can do it!”

His eyes snapped open and he growled, power suddenly surging through him. He ducked down, surprising his foe and causing him to surge forward, off balance. Loke took advantage of this moment, headbutting his chest and sending him toppling backwards. Before he could even try to get up claws were upon him, as Loke dug his front claws into his chest. There was a slight whimper, but no real rush of blood, she sighed in relief. She didn’t want to see a dragon sliced to death, even if it had manhandled her. Her dragon leaned on him, pushing him down with his weight as he leaned forward to snarl in his face.

“Don’t touch Lucy. Don’t take Lucy, Lucy is mine. Don’t insult Lucy, Lucy is perfect. You are not perfect, have no right to insult Lucy.”

Huh, he’s really coming along with his pronouns and he’s forming longer sentences too! A small bit of pride budded inside her at the realisation that his lessons were really starting to take hold. Now if only he would use her or she, instead of always referring to her as Lucy, that would be swell.

She shook her head, now was not the time to praise him! The other dragon quickly nodded, agreeing to his terms.

“Alright, calm down Leo, I won’t go near your little human”

Appeased by the new dragons subdued attitude he stepped off of him, immediately moving to be by Lucy, standing over her protectively. He needn’t have bothered with the effort though, as the new dragon simply rolled over then stayed laying down on his belly, a sign of submission. Well, he was in Loke’s cave, so that was the polite thing to do, now if only he had been like this from the start. He laid his head on the floor in shame, looking up at them both with large, apologetic eyes.

“I’m sorry. You know how I get with sexy or beautiful things Leo. My hoards full of statues and pictures of beautiful humans, seeing her, I couldn’t resist.”

“Lucy is beautiful, but Lucy not for your hoard. Touch Lucy again, while wanting to take Lucy away, Loke will snap your claws”

He glared down at the other dragon, who flinched at the thought, she wasn’t doing much better. A shudder went down her back as she realised her dragon was deathly serious, she patted his leg to try and calm him down.

“It’s alright Loke, it’s over now, he’s calmed down. He won’t touch me again and he’s apologised. While I do want him to stay at least a step away from me at all times, isn’t he your friend? You seem to know him”

A snort was her response, as finally, he relaxed, golden shoulders slumping. 

“Friend...strong word”

“Hey!” The other dragon shot up, but Loke actually looked more amused then threatened, to her surprise. “We’re friends! We’re celestial dragon friends! You shouldn’t lie in front of Lucy right?”

“I didn’t lie...You are friend...when not being stupid. Talk too much about stupid things, don’t need to know about human mag-maga…’maga-zeens’, how can body be hot? Humans melt when hot”

“I don’t think that’s the type of hot he means Loke. Whoever you are, please don’t ruin my dragon”

“Loke’s already ‘ruined’. He’s a gentleman now sure, but he used to be a right ladies dragon, aren’t I right?”

“...I hate you”

He shrugged off the seething glare coming from Loke with a large grin, this new dragon seemed to be enjoying this, perhaps enjoying getting under the others skin. Still, Loke a womaniser? It didn’t seem possible, not really. But even if he had been, he wasn’t now, he treated everyone with the respect they deserve...so what had inspired that change? She swore the more she learned about him the less she actually knew.

“Also my name is Taurus apparently? That’s what old Capri told me anyway. That my name in your language is Taurus and I was to treat you with utmost respect since you’re a lady and blah blah blah. Capri is back in the stone ages when it comes to treating others, Loke’s not too far ahead of him”

And yet she preferred the way they acted around her, so maybe they weren’t too out of touch. There was nothing wrong with being passionate about what you loved, but boundaries were a thing. Still, they would probably end up good friends, he seemed kind outside of his teasing. With a nod she had decided, he seemed to understand she wasn’t to become a part of his hoard, so they could get along, she might even learn more about Loke.

“Well, that may be the case, but I have a higher opinion of them currently...But i’m willing to start over and be your friend” Surprisingly, his black and white tail shook slightly in response, joy filling his expression. “But only if you keep your claws to yourself, i’m not to be manhandled”

“But you’re a woman?... I understand, I’ll keep my paws away from your magnificent body. Nothing is stopping me from visiting to chat with you both though right? And maybe stare a little?”

He winked at her and she couldn’t squash down the responding groan, nor get annoyed at how he giggled at her. This one was trouble. He was perverted, silly and not afraid to indulge himself, she could see her hair going as white as his. Still there was more than likely more to him then what you saw on the surface, she had long since realised dragons were much more complex than children’s tales gave them credit for.

“That’s probably the best i’m going to get so sure, as long as Loke doesn’t mind, I don’t mind you visiting either”

A small whine of confusion caught her attention, she looked up into bright eyes as his head tilted slightly. 

“Lucy wants more visits?”

“Well, maybe not from him specifically” The small retort was ignored by both of them, as in that moment, he was only paying attention to her. “But if more dragons come or, if he must, he visits more, I don’t mind. I don’t really have much of a say anyway really, it’s your cave”

He huffed, puffing warm air into her face,a bad habit he had picked up to express when he was annoyed with her. He didn’t need it anymore now he could talk and yet…

“Our cave, you have say too. If Lucy doesn’t mind friends visit, they visit. Lucy say no to friends, they stay away. I make sure they stay away”

“I wouldn’t keep you from your friends silly, you’ve known them longer than me, much longer than my family has been around...Our cave? Thank you Loke, it means a lot you’d give me a say, but this is your home first. At the end of the day your opinion is the more important one”

He huffed before looking up at Taurus, they stared off for a moment before he sighed.

“Guess Taurus can visit. No causing trouble”

The other dragon sauntered over, grinning at the both of them.

“I’ll be no trouble Leo, I just want to visit every now and then, maybe help out of the lady has any problems”

“Problems?”

Her dragon hummed beside her before sighing loudly, like it hurt him physically to admit what he was about to.

“Taurus annoying...but loyal. Strong. Good at protecting. Could trust to protect Lucy...probably”

She couldn’t disagree with the strong part, images of them ramming each other and clawing at each other invaded her mind. They were lucky that Loke was a bit smarter, otherwise they would have been in trouble. He seemed to have enough strength to easily flip over another dragon if he wanted to.

“Hey now, that wasn’t exactly a glowing review you know?”

He snorted and she couldn’t help but giggle, it seemed the teasing went both ways with these two, what a relief. Their little spats seemed to just be part of their friendship, she couldn’t exactly understand it, but it reminded her of Natsu and Gray. They could jump at each other, but she would bet jewels if a random dragon tried to hurt one of them, the other would fly in to support them. They were idiots, but that could probably be fun.

“I think that was actually quite kind Taurus, he’s very picky isn’t he? Like he needs everything to be perfect”

“Right! You understand him so well little lady!”

“Why gang up on me?! Whose side Lucy on?”

“My own, that way I can tease you both at the same time.”

Her dragon let out an unamused huff, but was unable to hide the slight smile from her. Taurus was less sneaky about his joy, laughing with his whole body. 

“She has you whipped my friend, an independant human in a dragon’s lair is a rare thing. Good luck with this one, she might end up being the one wearing the trousers here”

“I probably already do. I honestly don’t know how he lived without me”

He whined beside her, nuzzling and nudging her, trying to get her to stop. 

“Lucy, be nice to me. I like us being nice”

She gave in to his large, pleading eyes. His lip wobbled for extra measure and she felt she really had no choice but to pet him.

“I like being nice to you too Loke”

Their guest got closer, beaming down at her as his tail shook in anticipation, huh maybe that was a common response with dragons?

“How about being kind to me too princess?”

She was about to respond when there was a small hiss from her dragon, it was barely there, a warning more than a threat. It seemed to surprise the both of them however. Loke tilted his head, not completely sure why he had just snarled in the first place.

“Woah dude, what was that?”

“Don’t know ...don't go near Lucy. I don’t like it”

“What’s the matter? Capricorn was allowed near me”

“Capricorn different ...I think?” He started to grumble, interrupted by his stomach rumbling. “I’m hungry too. Lucy hungry, need to get food”

“No wonder you’re on edge if you’re hungry, you need to remember to eat buddy”

“....But you were going to get food...why did you come back so early?”

“Felt a pull, needed to come back” He frowned up at Taurus. “Did you touch my treasure?”

“No! The little lady can back me up here, the only thing I touched was her”

She could feel her own face marr into a frown, glaring up at Taurus. Spotting her reaction, Loke copied her, not clear on what his friend had done wrong, but certain there was something wrong with what he’d said.

“...Did you have to word it like that? But he is right, he never touched anything else Loke”

He mumbled in response, confused as to what was going on. He whimpered slightly as he moved closer to her, nuzzling her to comfort himself. She heard a faint hum from the bull dragon and looked up at him.

“Dragons feel an intense pull if something they treasure is touched or taken away. There’s a need from deep down that drives them to return to it. If I only touched you, yet he felt that pull, then…”

“Loke sees me as a treasure?”

She wasn’t expecting the visceral reaction from said dragon but he flustered and floundered backwards. She tried to follow him but he whined at her, panicked as he started to pace.

“Lucy not trinket, Lucy not just some gold. I know that, Lucy not just object, not just treasure. Lucy friend, good friend, family”

He was starting to wind himself up, his wings flapping slightly as he tried to convince someone (her, himself?) he didn’t think lowly of her. If he thought she’d be insulted by the implication he cared enough to want to protect her...well, she would have to put him to rights. First, they needed some space. 

“Taurus, I’m sorry, but I think I need to chat with my dragon, before he pops a blood vessel apologising”

He at least knew to look ashamed of himself, wings hanging limply at his sides as he hung his head.

“Right Lucy...I didn’t mean to upset him. It is a little weird, I guess, but he’s weird, it fits. He’s always had priorities I can't understand, but he doesn’t mean anything bad by this”

“...Why do you both think it’s wrong to want to protect someone?”

“It’s not wrong...but doesn’t it mean he sees you as a possession?”

She was about to strangle one or both of these dragons. For an old species, they had such strange ideas when it comes to personal relationships.

“Humans treasure each others company all the time. Places like Fairytail, the guild where I work, thrive off of the need to protect those around them and each other. So I suppose as a human, to me, this just seems like he’s being a good friend?”

That caused Loke to pause his ranting, staring at her shocked.

“Lucy thinks I’m a good friend? Even though Lucy treasure to me?”

“A very good friend, my best friend in fact”

He was back at her side in an instant, laying in front of her so she could pet and rub his nose. 

“Keep Lucy safe, I promise”

“I know you will buddy”

She moved to rubbing his cheeks and behind his ears, having learned he loved it more than anything. Taurus shook his head at them, even as he turned to leave. 

“It is strange, seeing you cuddle a dragon like that. But hey if it works for you both, go for it.”

“I didn’t realise we needed your blessing Taurus”

“...Keep an eye on this one Leo, she’s spunky”

He laughed as he left, amused by this courageous human, willing to tease and banter with a monster many times her size. She found herself a little worn out, but also equally amused by the larger dragon. He was clearly one to keep an eye on himself, who knew what kind of trouble he would cause?

She caught herself wondering about it even as Loke curled around her to accept her affection.

“You have some strange friends Loke”

“You’re strange too Lucy. Most humans would run from me, not care for me”

“Well most humans are missing out on a kindhearted friend...Who really worries way too much.”

“I know I do. I just want this to be ok. Haven’t had the best history with humans”

“You haven’t? Why do you say that?”

But he turned his head away from her and refused to say anything else on the subject. She felt she had learnt something important, that there was a story there to be uncovered. He wasn’t happy with sharing it just yet, but maybe one day? Still, if she ever found humans who had abused him, they’d be in serious trouble.

It wasn’t just him protecting her after all.


	12. ...and a sheep cleans it up

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> With Loke feeling a little down in the dumps, it makes the day a little brighter when a certain friend of his comes to visit.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ahhhh i am so sorry this story took so long to update, life for me is crazy but that's no excuse. Please take this chapter of Aries and Lucy becomeing friends with my apologies.

Several days passed and yet her dragon was still moping, she was getting kind of sick of it. She thought she had made her feelings on the matter very clear, but oh well. He’d calm down eventually she supposed, for now it was life as usual, maybe with a little extra silliness to try and cheer him up.

She sighed as she walked home, shopping bags rustling with the movement. It was the end of a long day, she didn’t really need to pay attention to know the way anymore. So focused on him, she almost missed the rustling of the bushes nearby. Thankfully for her, the movement caught her eye, causing her to pause. There was a large shape clearly trying to hide behind and between the trees. It might have succeeded if it wasn’t for its size and colour, bright pink and white stood out against the green leaves. There was a moment of stillness before she spoke, feeling more than a little awkward. 

“Are you ok?”

There was a crash as the shape jumped, before rushing out of the foliage. 

“I’m sorry! I’m sorry for hiding!”

It (she? It sounded very feminine) laid low in front of her, eyes closed as she whimpered and shook. She was finally able to get a good look at the creature and recognise it as a dragon. 

“It’s alright, you don’t need to apologise or hide from me, I won’t hurt you”

They stayed still for a moment, silence reigning as she tried to figure out a way to comfort the clearly frightened dragon, when it slowly stood up. It seemed to curl in on itself, making its skinny frame even smaller. She was pretty sure that even standing tall this dragon was shorter than Loke. She was able to get a better look at it now though and catalogue its features.

It had curled horns at the top of its white head, pointing downwards. Pink fluff was wrapped around its neck like a warm collar. It’s snout was shorter than the others and had softer facial features. The pink fluff was on the back and ridges of its wings. If they were open she had a feeling the pink framed a glowing set of stars. It had a milky white body with what looked like short fur covering it, ending with a short, pink, fluffy tail. It reminded her of a sheep’s tail.

The dragon didn’t talk so she felt the need to break the stifling silence.

“Are you ok? You’re not lost are you?”

The dragon flinched before apologising again, bowing low, she was probably very lost. The voice was definitely feminine and with how much smaller it was then the male dragons, she felt safe assuming this was the first female dragon she’d seen! Now if only she wasn’t so timid. 

“Well, you can come with me? I’m going home to a large cavern in the forest, you’ll be safer there”

Her eyes widened, lifting her head off the ground to look at her. She looked her up and down before slowly raising to her feet once more. Shivering, but seemingly gathering her courage, she nodded.

“You’ll come with me?”

She hummed in the positive, looking away from her, unable to keep eye contact. She took that as the cue to go ahead and turned back down the path, moving her way through the forest. She walked a few steps, not hearing anything behind her. She was about to stop and turn around when she finally heard one footstep behind her. So that was how this was going to be? She could work with this. She kept moving, focusing on her shopping and the task waiting for her at home, pretending she didn’t notice the shy dragon following her.

Predictably Loke was laying in wait for her outside the cave, still moping slightly. He cheered up when he spotted her though, tail waving slightly behind him. He stretched his back and wings before standing.

“Lucy, welcome home!”

“Hey Loke, we have a guest”

He tilted his head in confusion, not seeing anyone with her. He was about to question her when the other dragon finally came out from behind the trees, shyly looking away from them both. His reaction was immediate. She watched, with some amusement, as his eyes lit up and he bounded over to the newcomer. He was basically singing with joy as he spoke their shared language, even though she couldn’t grasp it properly, she could tell he was excitedly babbling. This must be a dear friend to him, she couldn’t stop his joy spreading to her as a grin overtook her as well. She was a little surprised with how forward he was, how he nuzzled her while he chirped. He moved to stand by her, a wing casually spreading out to fold over her, like he was holding her close. It was so abundantly affectionate, in a way she’d only seen him act around her…

He finally turned back to her, catching her frowning, he let out a small whine in response.

“What’s wrong Lucy?”

“Is this what Taurus meant when he said you’re a ladies dragon?”

The response was amazing, she wished she could frame his spluttering and panicked denials. He shook his head vigorously, to refute her and calm himself down, before speaking.

“Taurus big liar, Lucy, don't listen to him! Aries is very close to me, like family!” 

He stood tall and proud, annoyed at the mere suggestion he was playing around, but she was more focused on the smaller dragon in question. She had stopped shaking and was in fact leaning against Loke, fully tucked under his wing like she could hide there. Family huh? They certainly brought up a certain dynamic in her mind.

“I can see it, you remind me of an overprotective big brother keeping his younger sister safe.”

“That’s right! I’m her big brother. We’re not a real family, but turned family. That is stronger I think.”

She could see they weren’t related from looking at them, but the confirmation was nice she supposed. She could also agree with him, sometimes a found family was much more loving than your real one. You just had to look at Fairytail for proof of that.

“Then why don’t you invite your sister in? We shouldn’t leave her out here in the wild”

“Right! Come in Aries, see my new home. It's much better, bigger, it can hold more treasure!”

He moved to walk in but she hung back, staring down at the small human in her way. How could such a large magical creature be afraid of her? It was surprising but also very worrying, what had this poor dragon gone through?

“It’s ok, please come in, his home-”

“Our home Lucy!”

“- _ Our  _ home is your home”

“It’s ok, Lucy’s not like other humans, Lucy won’t hurt you” 

She finally started to move, keeping close to Loke’s side as she made her way slowly past her. The moment she was past Lucy she sped up, fleeing into the cavern, catching her and Loke off guard. He quickly followed, talking in their language to try and soothe her. She stood there, unsure if she should follow, there was something she wanted to do today, but her new friend seemed terrified at the mere sight of her. She didn't want their guest to be uncomfortable and it wouldn’t be fair if those two didn’t get the chance to catch up. They were close and she didn't want to ruin their time together. She sighed, tired but relenting. She couldn’t force herself onto someone unwilling to share her company, she would just have to rest up at Fairytail tonight and try again in the morning if she was still here. She barely got a step away when he poked his head out of the cave, confused she hadn't followed after them.

“Where is Lucy going?”

“To Fairytail, i’m staying the night”

“Why?”

“So you can spend some time with your friend. I don’t want to upset her, I’m making her uncomfortable.”

“Aries is not angry or upset, just shy. Been shy for a long time now, new people, new dragons make her shy. Keep distance, let her get used to you, will be fine”

“Are you sure?”

“Very sure, come in, come in!”

He surprised her by quickly bounding behind and nudging her forward with his snout. She took the not so subtle hint and gave in, leading a happy, chirping Loke back into his cave. Their guest was currently sniffing her stuff, curious about her human trinkets. She raised her head at their entrance, and upon seeing the human owner of this little hoard, promptly squeaked, turned and fled. Her wings were curled and raised as she scrambled her way to the furthest tunnel entrance. After hiding herself in it, her head the only thing visible, she started to apologise.

“I’m sorry I touched your hoard, I’m so sorry!”

She wasn’t sure how anyone can be simultaneously loud yet soft but Aries managed it.

“It’s alright, i’m not angry. You can have a look if you want to”

She whimpered before looking away from them. Turning her head up, she shot him a glance, tilting her head in the scared dragon’s direction.  _ Are you sure this is ok? _ He nodded furiously in response so she took that as a shaky ok, not quite convinced but still sorta willing to go along with it.

She made her way to her old, wooden table and gently placed her bag on it, not thrilled with the idea of Aries blindly running down into the deeper caverns in fear and getting lost. Every little movement would have to be slower, quiter, to accommodate her. Thankfully she had chosen a peaceful task to tackle today. Loke moved to her table, paused then stepped a few steps away before laying down, so he was still staring straight at her, but there was some distance between them. 

As she calmly strolled over to her bed to grab her pillow, she noted this strange behaviour, what was he up to?

“What are you doing?”

“Nothing Lucy” His eyes darted to Aries for a moment before returning to her, a small smile on his face. “Just resting. Want to explain what's in the bag?”

He must have a plan, to be so calm and cheerful, well she’ll just have to go along with it, not that she had any better ideas. She made her way back to the table, placing the pillow down on top of it.

“Some craft supplies, I've been teaching myself the past few days and I think I'm really getting the hang of it. Hopefully enough to fix this pillow”

“Does Lucy like fixing?”

“It’s more of a need then a want, living like I do things are bound to get broken. So if I can mend them or patch them up that would be swell, which is why I started learning.”

“....Is crafting being poked with a needle?”

“...No that’s just me being clumsy...and you know that you cheeky dragon!”

He had the sheer audacity to grin at her and she huffed, turning away from him to sit down at the table.

“Lucy is very clumsy, falls over a lot. I have to save and catch a lot, so tiring. Such hard work that’s not appreciated”

She couldn’t help but snort in reply.

“Oh yeah? Well whose fault is it again that I’ve even had to learn how to repair things? I don’t believe it was me who made a large tear in my pillow”

That got him to be quiet, if not for a few moments at least. She revelled in the victory as he thought over what to say next. She pulled some plain white thread out of the bag, followed by a pack of needles. It wasn’t that surprising she kept losing them, but at this point she now feared standing on sharp rocks and sharp metal. He was being surprisingly quiet, so she risked a quick peak to him and caught him softly talking towards the cavern. It didn’t take a genius to realise he was encouraging Aries over, or perhaps she was already closer and he was simply chatting with her. So that had been the plan, talk to each other, explaining the situation covertly to her until she felt safe coming over. She fought the temptation to turn around to face them properly, she would not ruin their efforts. 

She faced the needle and thread once more before sighing, this was the ‘fun’ part. The part she somehow always struggled with. She did her best to thread the needle, concentrating on doing what seemed impossible.

She was impressed that by her sixth attempt that she hadn’t either poked herself or thrown it all away in frustration, but she was getting there. The end of the tread was getting frayed but she swore if it didn’t start behaving she-

A warm puff of air stopped her internal rant, another caused her to pause, a third caused her to turn and investigate. It took everything in her to not jump up at the sight of a large snout only a few steps away. Forcefully frozen in place, she couldn’t react quick enough to calm Aries once they made eye contact, as she jumped, ground rumbling underneath her wings and scrambled backwards.

“Wait! Please it’s ok, I promise, it’s alright”

She paused, sticking close to Loke, before whispering to him. He nudged her in response, tilting his head. 

“Aries has a question for Lucy”

“Well I’ll happily answer it, anything you want to know”

“U-u-m..What are you doing?”

“You mean with this? Well Mr clumsy over there got a little excited and tore up my pillow, so i’m sewing it closed.”

Her large eyes flickered over to the spools of thread before moving back to the pillow.

“Pillow?...Is i-it important?”

“Well yeah. I rest my head on it when I sleep. It helps me drop off since it’s so soft-”

“Y-you like soft things?”

Did she just get interrupted? By a dragon looking at her like she's just announced the location of the world's most valuable treasure? Wait, was she trying to be friendly? She was almost stunned into silence by the apparent legway she had suddenly made towards a new friend.

“Uh yeah, I do. A soft pillow is perfect for sending me straight to sleep”

“I-i like soft things too!”

“You do?”

As if finally realising she was getting excited, getting closer, she froze, stuttering a quiet response. Thankfully her best friend was there to support her, actually getting up to stand by her, allowing her to find security under his wing.

“Yes, she loves soft and fluffy things. Her hoard is full of fluffy things, soft things. Natural, man made and dragon made. If it passes her touch test it goes in the hoard. I’m not allowed to touch. I mess up softness...maybe”

She got the feeling he had absolutely accidently ripped something apart in Aries’s hoard, poor her.

“That suits you I think, it sounds lovely anyway. It’s probably incredibly secure isn’t it? To lay down surrounded by things that make you feel warm and happy?”

She slowly stepped out from under Loke’s wing, staring down at her with such joy it surprised her, yet it was infectious, a small smile creeping over her. Ever so slowly, she crept closer, keeping her eye on the spool of thread.

“...U-um because you understand….can...can I have…?”

She looked at the spool, not expectantly, she got the feeling this dragon couldn’t demand anything, but rather politely. She could say no, but it felt cruel to do so.

“Sure, why not? I can't get it to thread anyway, maybe a new spool will help me”

She held her palm facing upward, the spool resting on it. There was a small squeal of glee as it was gently taken from her, pulled away by her claws before resting in her palm. She pulled it close to her, smiling brightly for the first time since she’d spotted Lucy and what a cute smile it was. If she could keep her this happy, that’d be great. There was an atmosphere around this dragon, if she felt safe you did too. 

“What about Lucy’s pillow? How will you fix it?”

“I’ll be fine I can-”

“Ah I’m sorry! H-h-have this...please...from me…”

She was nervous again, shaking slightly. She reached out to her wing, plucking off a bit of fluff from the back and handing it out to her.

“...For me?”

She was touched, it was a bit of a strange gift perhaps, but it was one from the heart, or wing in this case.

“Y-yes...for giving me this...and for welcoming me in...I’m sorry it’s not a lot!”

“No it’s fine thank you”

She stood and took the soft wool from her, and soft was definitely the right word. It felt so light in her fingers, she could probably lay her head on it and drift off it was so relaxing to touch. She unconsciously curled it in her fingers as she tried to find the words to express her happiness. 

“This is lovely, i’ll keep it safe”

“Can it h-help you? Will it replace this?”

“Not really? It needs to be more like yarn...but I could go into town and have it worked. If I did that I could use it. I could go down now, save waiting”

That and it would allow Aries a chance to calm down after talking with her for so long. She was surprised that she was actually stopped by her though, holding out her clawed hand for her.

“Um...could you, put my wool...on my hand...please?”

She had lost the nerve to look her in the eye, but she couldn’t refuse her. This lovely dragon was really trying and she wouldn’t argue with her. Besides, Loke was nodding energetically behind her so something was about to happen. 

The moment the wool was in her hands it started to glow, along with all the wool on her wings, neck and tail. She watched, enchanted, as the wool seemed to process itself, magically changing into a long string of yarn. It then wrapped itself up into a yarn ball before all glowing stopped and it sat there innocently, like it hadn’t just changed right in front of her. 

“W-what was that?”

“Aries magic! Controls her wool and all wool. Things made from wool too! She’s so cool right Lucy? Amazing!”

He was looking so proud of his friend as she took the now yarn ball from her. In response she hid back under his wing, unable to handle his cooing and praise. She was definitely blushing, not that she could see her face, hidden in Loke’s side as it was, but the way she was quietly whining gave it away.

Still, this power was cool? Perhaps, she wasn’t sure how useful it was but it definitely suited such a soft soul.

“It’s definitely interesting. A sweet power for a sweet dragon”

“Sweet?...Lucy hasn’t been suffo-suffoca...knocked out by wool before. Her wool makes you sleep.”

“What?”

He must be joking right? This lovely dragon hurting someone? It didn’t seem possible, how could a ball of wool put you out anyway? Yeah this was probably some stupid joke of his, though his proud look was definitely not faked. Regardless of her actual power, he clearly saw strength in her, even as he cuddled her close, fawning over and protecting her. 

“Well your power was helpful, thank you, with this I can continue my sewing...You don’t mind if I use this right?”

“No...it's a gift for you”

She went to sit down, to continue, but feelings of love were swirling inside her, how were these dragons able to endear her so? The yarn was gently placed onto the table before she stood before them.

“Thank you….um...this is a bit weird to ask but well...I’m used to this big doofus over here enjoying hugs. Would you like one?”

The look of sheer glee on his face almost made her laugh. He stepped away, taking his wings with him, looking between the two with the same expectant excitement a puppy has. Aries didn’t look as thrilled however, so maybe a hug was too much? Perhaps then, just a simple pat on the nose?

She took a slow breath, doing her best to calm them both before holding her hand out. Understanding the risks but deciding to trust in her new friend, she turned her head away, not wanting to spook her with unwanted eye contact. In some strange sense, for that moment, she was at her mercy. But she trusted in Loke, in his trust in his friends, she was fine, they would both be perfectly-

There was a slight pressure against her hand and she almost gasped, almost ruined it. It was with great self control that she kept all her excitement deep down as she took the time to look her over and smell her, before finally pushing her snout completely against her palm. 

She took this as the cue to look up, to finally see into her eyes and she was glad she did. Sure they were wide and clearly a little frightened, but they were so clear and pretty. Taking another deep breath she took the initiative to slightly rub her nose, gauging her reaction. She didn’t seem sure at first and for a moment it seemed to them both that she was going to run away again, but her own kind heart won out. Beneath that fear she wanted to be cared for and she revelled in the small touch, closing her eyes as she was petted. This was enough for now, this was the boundary and that was perfectly fine for both of them.

The moment was completely shattered by a loud shout of joy, they both jumped and faced Loke, who was currently bouncing around the cave, doing small laps in his joy.

“Lucy and Aries friends! My best friends are friends! This is great!” He charged over to Aries, nuzzling her and making a sound almost like a purr. “Proud of you, so proud, so very brave. Very brave right Lucy?”

She was getting caught up in his exuberance, chuckling at his goofy grin. His pride was her own though and she knew this had been a big step for the other, more timid, dragon. 

“Yes, it was very brave, you have every right to be proud of her”

If anything, he somehow got worse, preening under her affection and attention. He was a big child really, it was moments like this that made her doubt he was a leader, but he was definitely part of a family. He laid down, encouraging Aries to lay beside him, leaning up against him. He patted in front of him, clearly intending for her to sit in his hands.

“Come here Lucy”

“But my chores-”

“Fix later Lucy, talk now! Read a story perhaps? Read the story Lucy is writing? Aries would enjoy that”

She looked to the dragon in question, wanting her opinion, but was surprised (and a little touched) to see her looking down at the spool of thread she had been given. It was such a small thing, not priceless in the slightest, nothing compared to her gift for Loke and yet…

“You treasure that as much as Loke treasures the ring I gave him...Well I assume you treasure it, I don’t see it”

“That ring in its box, safe, only for me. Love it Lucy!”

“Right, of course it is...I’m sorry that your gift isn’t-”

She shook her head furiously in response, claws tightening around it slightly.

“First gift from a human….I-I-I like that humans can make wool and thread, that it's still a little fluffy but useful. I will keep it in my hoard I p-promise...I won’t lose it”

That cinched it for her, she could see why Loke acted like a big brother to her now, she was a kind soul. She could see the impact she was having on him, just being around her had lightened up his day, the fact they all now got along had made him over the moon. That would probably be literal if he could survive in space. The last of the dark clouds were gone from his posture, his eyes, his smile. He was chittering again, distracted by Aries, he almost couldn’t shut up around her, a constant need to talk to and cuddle her. It was a lovely scene, to see them both so relaxed with each other, to see this dragon bonding Capricorn had mentioned. She almost felt like an intruder, but she had been invited so...

She nodded, giving in to his demands, she made her way to her bookshelf. She picked out a few adventure and romance stories before also pulling out her own. She made her way slowly back with an armful of books. She placed them carefully down onto his pam before sitting on it herself. He looked to Aries then to her and beamed, clearly enjoying being beside them both. His tail started thumping a rhythm against the cavern floor. He was completely captivated by the both of them, not sure if he wanted to see Lucy reading or Aries’s reaction to the things Lucy was saying. 

Her interest seemed to be piqued too, a story was a way to listen and bond with someone, without having to get too close or figure out what to say, it felt more comfortable then her awkward attempt at conversing with a human. She got herself tucked in comfortable against Loke’s side before shyly nodding, she wanted to hear her new friend talk. 

In response Lucy smiled gently up at her, patting the pile of books.

“Ok, he’s heard them all before so as the newcomer you should pick. So Aries, what would you like?”

It took a quiet moment of pause, surprise dancing openly on her face, before she admitted she would like to hear the story Lucy was writing. Well the draft was a little embarrassing but she had the feeling Aries wouldn’t judge.

She joyfully spent the next hour or so reading then discussing her draft before they moved on to other topics, though it was mostly her and Loke talking, all three of them had fun and her pillow laid forgotten. All through the afternoon however, she couldn’t get the look of intense surprise out of her head. Surely this wasn’t the first time Aries had been given a choice... right?


	13. Inviting friends for dinner

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lucy starts to make their cave a home and some friends drop over for dinner

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> He's a quick chapter, I guess not more plot happens in it, it's more of a fluffy family life thing, as an apology for the wait. I do hope you enjoy it regardless.

The days once more started to fly by, she worked hard, saving up the money that wasn’t wasted on her friends...excitable nature. Seriously, why did she team up with Natsu if she wanted to  _ make  _ money? But despite it’s ups and downs, everything was going smoothly, she thought.

“Lucy?”

She was brought out of her book, and her musings, by her dragon’s friendly voice. She was sitting on her bed, staying near Loke as he sorted out his new haul, for some reason he just preferred her there as he worked. It was an excuse to just relax in quiet calm, so she took it. She put her book down as she turned to face him.

“What is it Loke?”

“Does Lucy want these? Useless to me, but Lucy finds them pretty?”

He held out a claw for her to examine. In the middle of his palm was a small pile of gemstones, a mixture of small sapphires, rubies, diamonds and more. She frowned up at him.

“Have you been pulling gems out of jewellery again? I’m certain jewellers all over are crying and don’t know why”

“Humans weird. Ruin gold and silver with ugly rocks!” He growled, as if the gems had personally offended him. “If Lucy doesn’t want-”

She shot up a hand to cut him off.

“I never said that. I could go into town today and get them valued, they might sell for a bit. What do you think Loke? I may not have a job today but I could still earn money”

“Lucy leave even though she has no job? Lucy is cruel”

He gave the most pathetic sob she had ever heard, he was really improving his method acting. She wasn’t impressed however, ignoring him as she got off the bed to take the gems off him.

“I’m not cruel, but a few storage cabinets wouldn’t go amiss, I have quite the list actually. Right now my chores are a drag to do, if I could make them even slightly easier, I’d be much happier. Also it would mean I could spend more time with you”

“More time?”

“Right, because everything would be less hassle. At the very least I’d feel cleaner if I didn’t just use the spring water to clean my clothes and bed covers”

He looked at her thoughtfully before nodding. 

“Lucy get more for her hoard, more that helps her. Take ugly rocks and make them help”

“Ya know, most humans would say these are very pretty”

“Most humans make no sense to Loke”

She laughed, amused by his childish words, he really was a dork. She shook her head as she placed the gems into a small bag before tying it closed.

“Alright, I'll see you later then, good luck with the rest of your haul”

He glared down at the offending heap at his side, as if it would just magically sort itself out.

“Need more than luck…”

He continued his grumbling even as she left, not enjoying the chore of organising his loot. They both would really prefer it if he just took everything, but that wasn’t a dragon’s nature, or at least, it wasn’t her dragon's nature. So he was left with the awful burden of deciding between two rings which was the shiniest, oh to be him.

Her shopping spree may have gone a bit out of control, depending on whether you asked her, or Natsu and Gray, who were currently lugging her new furniture through the forest. They had placed it on a trolley, the wheels getting caught every now and then on the rough earth. It was a hassle, she would be the first to admit that, but hey, it was important! And she was carrying two bags herself, so it wasn’t like she wasn’t helping. Erza and Happy walked along with them, ‘supervising’ them. After she had asked for help from Natsu, the others had demanded to come along, none of them had actually been to the cave yet, so they were all talking up about how they wanted to visit,but she had a sneaking suspicion they were also checking up on her. She wasn’t certain they fully trusted Loke yet, though she really couldn’t understand why. It’s not like she lived in constant fear or anything, maybe they were just protective of their guildmates.

“Ah, we’re here!”

She stopped in front of her home, amused when Natsu and Gray slumped over with matching groans, it’s what they got for being prideful and not accepting help. Not surprisingly there was a loud rumble inside the cave, followed by Loke rushing out to greet her, tail swaying wildly and almost crashing into the cavern entrance. He stared curiously at her, trying to peer into her bags. His muzzle got too close, she had to push him away, as he tried to sniff them.

“What did Lucy get? Show now!”

“He talks?!”

He was startled for a moment, looking around like he only just noticed the others were there, he probably had. Silly fool only focused on the new things. But now that he had noticed the others, he stood up straighter, chest puffed out in pride.

“Leo talk, not scare Lucy friends! Be friends with Lucy friends!”

He beamed down at them, obviously expecting immediate approval. There was a beat before Natsu grinned back, energy suddenly returning to him in waves.

“That’s awesome! Now everyone can understand you! We can all be friends right?”

“Right! Friends!”

Loke lowered himself so his head rested on the floor, allowing Natsu to come close to talk to him. His easy approval of Loke hadn’t surprised her, what did catch her off guard was that Gray followed suit, walking up to the dragon and giving him a once over.

“Well, if flame brain says your ok then you probably are. For as idiotic as he is, his instincts are pretty spot on. I feel like I may have been too suspicious when I last saw you, but hey I thought you were about to attack all of us”

“Never hurt Lucy. Never hurt Lucy’s friends”

“Yeah I know that now, still we should start over. I’m Gray”

“I’m Leo! It’s a ple- pleas-” He frowned, quickly moving his head up to turn and look at her. “What word again Lucy? To be nice to a friend?”

She thought over what he had been trying to say. He had unfortunately been picking up her polite way of talking, or maybe he was mimicking Capricorn? Whatever the reason, it was easy for her to work out what he wanted...

“Do you mean pleasure?”

“Yes!” He plopped his head back down, a satisfied look on his face. “It’s a pleshure to meet Gray”

To Loke’s great joy, Gray chuckled, he was doing this whole human thing right! His tail thumped gently against the ground as Gray actually had the bravery to pat his nose.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you too big guy”

“Big... guy? Humans so quick with names”

“Yeah, I guess we are...like flame brain”

“Watch it frostbite”

Loke watched, fascinated, as the two started bickering, calling each other every name under the sun, with Happy joining in and egging them both on. She wasn’t sure if she should encourage this, otherwise her dragon might pick up bad habits from the trio, but she was more concerned with Erza. The strong woman stood still as a stone, watching the scene with an unreadable expression. She took in a deep breath as she mentally psyched herself up, before moving to stand by her, catching her attention. 

“Is everything alright Erza?”

“Hm? Well I suppose everything's fine.” She caught her eye, examining her closely. She felt the other woman could look deep into her soul, she just hoped she liked what she saw. “Just seeing him reminded me of this strange situation, i’m not sure I can believe in it right off the bat. Besides, we’ve been friends for a bit now but you discuss nothing of your past. At least, nothing before that small time you’ve been with Leo, so it’s a little suspicious.”

Silence overtook them as she thought that over. She couldn’t blame Erza for thinking their situation was a little sketchy, but it wasn’t anything weird.

“Leo doesn’t hurt me if that’s what you’re getting at. We are legitimately friends and I willingly live with him. I don’t talk about my past because it’s dead and gone Erza. I have a new life now, I want to focus on that, everyone has things they’d rather forget right?”

She hoped that was enough, it wasn't convincing to her ears, but she had nothing else to say. Interestingly, she looked away in response, her face turning serious as she seemed to focus on something far away. At length, she quietly spoke up.

“Yes...I suppose we all do. I’ll trust him, but only because I trust you”

“That’s good enough for me”

They shared a tender moment of understanding, she was just glad they had come to an agreement. As long as Loke didn’t go crazy and attack her, Erza would leave well enough alone. It was a safe bet Loke would never hurt her, so she was definitely the winning party from this exchange, but still...what had caught Erza’s attention? Why had she seemed so...sad?

Her inner musings were halted by a loud shout, she looked up to find her dragon causing trouble again. He had seemingly gotten bored of his two new friends, spotting her new furniture instead. Curiosity had overtaken him as he started to sniff the trolley, trying to work out what it was for. If he wasn’t careful, he was going to break something. She shelved away Erza’s reaction, something to think about later, as she walked over, trying to stop an accident before it happened.

“Hey, get away from there! It’s not for sniffing!”

She would have swatted him if not for her bags, which once more caught his interest.

“What did Lucy get? Never say”

“Oh right! Well Natsu and Gray were lugging a kitchen cabinet with drawers, which will be perfect for holding the stuff in these bags. I’m thinking of keeping the cutlery in the drawers and the cleaning stuff and pots in the bottom part. I also have some plates, spices and condiments that can stay on top of it for now until I work out how to get proper shelving in there. Cool right?”

He could see the gears shifting in his head as he slowly nodded.

“Yes, very cool...Help Lucy?”

“Well yeah, it’s more hygienic to use more than one pot to cook, having the proper cooking and eating utensils finally is a blessing. I have washing up liquid and detergent for my clothes too. Trust me, this will make life easier for me”

“Isn’t this all work though?”

“Well the spices were for pleasure, no offense to the food you bring, but it will add new flavours, which I’m thankful for. But also Loke, not every purchase I make will be for pleasure, sometimes it has to be more grown up. I risk illnesses or other bad things otherwise.”

Predictably, he latched onto the end of her sentence, shaking his head furiously.

“I don’t want Lucy to be sick again”

“Exactly, besides I’m only just starting out, I've kept a bit of money from the sale to one side for now. I want to work out what I can get into our cave, what will help me make it more homely for me to live in, if you don’t mind of course”

He shook his head once more, eager to please her.

“Lucy can bring all Lucy wants. If this cave becomes home to Lucy, Lucy will stay!”

Lucy will stay? Of course she was going to- Huh, he was right. By buying all this, wasn’t it a sign she was finally comfortable with staying with him? He really didn’t need to worry anymore if she made this place comfortable for herself as well, go figure. He wasn’t a slow witted dragon that’s for sure, especially not since he immediately decided to help her. He easily picked up her new counter, to the annoyance of Natsu and Gray. Amongst them complaining that he could have met them halfway, she directed Loke to set it down a bit away from her bed, against the wall. She dumped the bags onto the counter, sighing in relief. She quickly sorted the contents to how she liked, stopped only when Loke started sniffing the spices. 

“Ok there Lo-Leo?”

“Smell funny”

“Probably, but they taste great. Wanna get us some food and i’ll show you? No eating yours, bring it straight here”

He shot a quick glance around at her friends, humming to himself, before deciding they were ok. He walked out of the cave, opening up his stunning wings, ready to fly.

“Be back quick Lucy”

“See you then Leo!”

He nodded to her, before finally taking off, in search of food. It was time to get everything ready. 

She had quickly finished sorting everything out, before preparing the pot ready for cooking. Thankfully Natsu had his fire magic, so the pot could be heated properly before Loke even returned, though the mage did grumble about being used in such a way. How was a dragon less likely to moan than a human? 

She had shown them the different tunnels in their cavern, quite a few were marked and signed now, only a few remained unknown to them both. This caused some worry but anything that could jump from those tunnels would have to go through her dragon first, which she believed explained why she was able to sleep peacefully at night. She was just giving them all a tour of her things when he finally returned, dumping meat in pieces in a pile on their old table.

“Here Lucy. I cut the meat so we can share!”

“Thanks buddy, now here try this, I get the feeling you’ll prefer this”

She picked a chilli powder she had bought at the market, it was less spicy than buying chillies outright, but she had wanted to save her taste buds. Still, she had a feeling he’d approve of them. She gently sprinkled the powder over one of the pieces before handing it out to him.

“Here you go, I bet you’ll love it”

He didn’t seem so certain, sniffing it warily, despite the encouragement from everyone. He shot her a look, an eyebrow raised at her, not taking a lot of bravery from her short nod in response. He sighed, taking the piece from her, before tentatively putting it into his mouth. She was annoyed by how slowly it took him to eat it but once he was actually tasting it he seemed satisfied. Once he recognised it tasted nice it was gone pretty quickly. He hummed in happiness, beaming down at her.

“Lucy was correct, this tastes nice. It’s like fire in my mouth, a good kick to it. It’s sharp in my mouth and I like it.”

Interesting description, but she got it, she would have to start paying attention to some of the stranger things he said, he really came up with some interesting new phrases as he fought with the english language. 

“I’m glad you enjoyed it, you can have some every now and then as a treat alright? If you’re good you can have spices”

“...I’ve been good today…?”

“Yes you have, so you’re allowed some”

He puffed out his chest, looking down at her friends, yes he was a good dragon! He was seriously just a child in a giant lizards body. As long as she praised him she got the feeling he could be kept cheerful all day. She took an armful of the pieces to cook in the pot, leaving him with the rest. There was a certain glee about making something in a new pot, even if it was something simple as….beef?....Beef soup. Probably best to not wonder what animal it was and go for beef. She took out some stock from her bag, putting it in to let it boil, finding some joy in doing some actual cooking. 

“Ok, so let that boil then put this in...right?”

“That seems right Lucy, though if you cook it we’ll eat it anyway”

“Thank you….but please don’t get food poisoning on my account” 

“If you can somehow poison this idiot’s iron belly I’d be more impressed then upset”

“Hey! Wanna go?!”

Magic started to flow into the cave, swirling around them, this was bad!

“A-actually i’m doing much more than cooking too!”

Loke had raised his head, glaring, ready to defend Lucy from any potential danger. She did not need a threeway fight between them or Erza retracting her previous faith in them. Thankfully she had recaught their interest, their fight gone as soon as it came.

“Really? What else do you do?”

“Well obviously I’ve been taking jobs with you guys and learning how to fight with a whip along the way, but I’m also an aspiring writer. I’m getting through my first draft actually. It’s a long process but Lo-Leo’s encouragement really helps me”

“Lucy’s story is amazing!”

“Oh, fancy letting us read it then?”

Embarrassment surged through her, searing hot and bringing red to her cheeks. She quickly dumped the meat into the pot, stirring it as it cooked and started to create a nice stew. 

“M-maybe when it’s done….Oh moving on, I’ve just picked up sewing too, out of necessity, but still. I recently fixed a pillow that had been torn….though I’m not sure how good it was, I’m kinda worried I wasted such good material”

“It wasn’t a waste, you still have plenty Lucy”

“Yeah I guess...but maybe I could learn to make something, something warm for the winter maybe? What do you think Leo? Would you wear something I made?”

“YES! Wear everyday!

She shared his eagerness, ready to tackle such a hard challenge, ignoring her skill level for the moment.

“Woah, maybe you should focus on one hobby? I believe persistence is a good trait but maybe you should calm down.”

“It’s hard to explain...but I’ve come from a life where others did mostly everything for me, this is all new and exciting to me. Also, before I joined Fairytail, it got boring when I was alone here. All I could do was read books and idle away the time. As a person, that wound me up. So yeah I’m probably trying too much at once, but I want to learn. I can't sit around doing nothing, that's not who I am. So I'm learning how to do as much as I can to support us both. I thank him and the fact he lets me live with him for the chance to do so.”

He shot her dragon a small smile, getting a big grin in response, he straightened up a little under her gaze, trying his best to impress. 

“I thank Lucy for staying, keeping me company. Lucy stops me from being bored, a good friend to me. Even feeds me now! So great!”

He chuckled at his own joke, his food still in front of him. Was he waiting for them? That was really cute. She was interrupted in her thoughts by Erza placing a hand on her shoulder

“Your ambition is inspiring, keep it up, just don’t overwork yourself.”

“Or get too eager about things”

“Yeah, I love food but cooking it is such a drag”

“Aye sir! Just burn it with fire”

“Yeah!”

That was a worrisome image, she remembered back to when they first met, did they eat food raw often? Actually, the image of Natsu and Happy catching their own fish together was kinda sweet. She’d offer to go with them, but she got the feeling Loke would get competitive...Yeah he would definitely dive in and grab a massive load of fish. Just to please her, heck he’d probably even let her claim she’d caught them…

“Still, you getting so caught up in and excited about your cooking is something else.”

“Ah well, it’s the potential for new tastes that most excites me. I know right now all this is, is meat in stew form but can you imagine this with some vegetables to compliment it? I could try and really experiment with food now! I know that probably sounds boring to you guys but after only having meat, a little fruit and veg wouldn’t hurt. And all the possible ways I could change or spice up a meal...I’m looking forward to it.”

“I understand Lucy, besides it might be fun to see what you come up with, on top of your writing and guild work. Though how you’re going to have time for these creations is a good question”

“Yeah, I am piling on the things I want to do aren’t I? I don’t mind though, I can- Hey!”

She stopped mid sentence, to watch as Loke, who had pinched the chilli powder, tipped it all over his food. He then shoved the entire thing into his mouth, swallowing it whole. Black smoke poured out of his nostrils and he hummed happily, tail swaying in joy. She ran over, handing pot watching duty over to Erza, planning to give him a scolding, though he didn’t look particularly bothered.

“You can't just eat it all in one sitting!”

“This tastes so good Lucy! Please buy more!”

“Not if you keep doing this greedy guts! Herbs and spices cost money and if you go through it all this quickly I’d have to spend every jewel I had on them. To think, I was going to make my own powder out of chillies for you. It would have been much hotter. If you’re going to be naughty I won’t bother”

“No Lucy! I just like your cooking! It’s a compliment!”

“It’s not a compliment if you can't taste my cooking under all the spice!”

“Yes it is!”

As they continued to argue over what constitutes appreciating Lucy’s cooking, they ignored their guests, who were looking at each other bemused by the pair.

“Maybe she should add dragon babysitter to that list, regardless of how difficult it actually is. I’m pretty sure keeping him out of trouble is actually her most time consuming task. Surely it drives her crazy sometimes”

“Maybe, she seems to enjoy it though, to really enjoy his company and trust him...So let it be Erza, all you’re doing is adding more worry onto her shoulders”

“....Alright, for her I will”

When Lucy returned, all apologies about his rude behaviour, she was surprised that no one minded. So it was with an easy mind she got back to cooking them the best meal she’d ever made. 

Her mind would have been much more at ease if she knew, when Loke came plodding over to lay by her and whine his own apologies, that Erza had finally approved of him and trusted him as a part of her family.


	14. Fond memories

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lucy finally makes up the money to buy something important to her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Man it's been a while since I've written for this au, it's a bit of a slow chapter but it's something sweet to slip back into.

This was it, today had finally been the day when she had gotten something important to her. She proudly strolled through the forest back home, a small package clutched tightly to her chest and a small bag held loosely with her other hand.. She basically ran through the entrance to their home, cheerful and buzzing.

“Hey Loke! I’m back”

Her answer was silence, puzzled she looked around. Worry started to spring up in her as the seconds passed and he didn’t show up, she was used to him appearing immediately. She was about to call again when finally an answering roar bellowed through one of the tunnels. She sighed in relief, a funny reaction if she thought about it, when he came bounding in through one of the tunnels, cave shaking a little as he did so.

“LUCY! Welcome home!”

“Hey, where were you? You had me worried”

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to” He leaned down to nuzzle her gently. “I’m finally getting around to exploring all these tunnels, making sure there’s nothing bad”

Her curiosity won her over, what was in those tunnels? She looked him up and down, he didn’t seem injured.

“Is there anything bad?”

“No, so far just a lot of bugs, how was Lucy’s day?”

She was glad for the change of topic, not really wanting to think about what kind of creatures make such a damp and dreary place their home.

“Really good, one of the best even! Look what I've got!”

She gently placed the bag on the floor and held the package out for his inspection, allowing him to sniff it, before tilting his head at her in confusion. She gleefully opened the package, revealing a large, hardback book. The cover was bright and colourful, pictures of magical creatures decorated the front and back. It was a book of children’s fairy tales, perhaps a bit young for her, but she’d read every single one a hundred times over and still enjoy them. He didn't seem to share her enthusiasm however.

“A book? Lucy has lots of those already...Is Lucy becoming like Capricorn? Hoarding a ton of books? I don’t mind, i’m glad you’re increasing your hoard”

He nodded at her, pulling back to sit up. She shouldn’t be surprised he didn’t quite get it but it still made her uncomfortable to have to explain herself.

“No, I'm not. It’s not really the fact it’s a book, but rather the book itself. It’s incredibly important”

He hummed, thinking her words over.

“So it’s a rare book? A precious one? I don’t really understand what makes one book better than another in value”

She fidgeted, fingers idly taping the book cover as she pondered her next words.

“It is an old book, so it was hard to find and a little on the expensive side for what it is, I mean it’s not even first edition, but it has more value to me then anything else.” She took a deep breath, calming herself against her rampaging memories and emotions. “It reminds me of my mother, she used to read me this book when I was a child to help me go to sleep. She used to do voices for all of the characters and really made them come to life...I was at my happiest back then”

There were a few moments of silence as that information sank in, it didn’t take a genius to read between the lines and Loke was no moron, though he acted like one sometimes. When he finally spoke up, his voice was surprisingly soft for him.

“....Lucy hasn’t seen her for a long time?”

“My mother she...she died when I was young. They say she just got sick one day and...and...-” She cursed quietly, trying to keep herself from crying. “-and I never saw her again after that. These memories are some of the only ones I have of her, so I treasure them greatly”

He looked down, eyes sombre and filled with care, she almost couldn’t take such a kind and understanding look from him.

“Is there more of her out there? I could go and get them”

“No, it’s not worth potentially revealing our location to my father, besides he threw away a lot of my childhood things when he deemed I was grown up enough. The stories she used to read and the games we played included...in fact he threw away a lot of our memories of her in his grief.”

He hummed, tilting his head in thought.

“Humans and dragons both do strange things in grief, things that cause regret”

She snorted, an old pain rising up and throbbing through her veins. The vitriol she felt towards her father hadn’t really ever cooled down. In fact, without an outlet, it had just bubbled inside her, getting stronger as the years went on.

“I wonder if he regretted it, even once. The memories he threw away...or the large wall he built between us”

Her bitterness stung even her, but it couldn’t be helped, his treatment of her had cut deep and hadn’t been given the proper attention to allow it to heal. Loke picked up on her struggles, slowly lowering his head so she could hug his snout.

“Too late now for regret. Even if he does, we’re family now. Lucy now stays here, with me, with friends. All he can do is apologise and be better but not take Lucy back, too late for that...too late”

“You don’t think I'm being petty? Pushing him away like this? I worry I’m acting like him”

“No, he had plenty of time to change, to be better. Lucy gives him lots of chances. He didn’t, that was his fault. Lucy owns Lucy’s life, not him, he has no right to it. If he goes or stays in it is no longer his choice. That is what I believe anyway, I will beat anyone who says it’s wrong, just say the word”

He was adamant in his defence of her, so earnest, it tugged at her heart, bringing emotions to the surface she thought she’d long since squashed down and boxed away. She wasn’t proud of the way she clung to him and cried but he didn’t mind, she felt a claw at her back as he gently held her against his muzzle. Closing his eyes, he started to let out a small rumble, his ‘purr’, and she felt it vibrate through her. There was something surprisingly relaxing about it, something that helped soothe her.

It took awhile for the tears to stop, for all the regret and pain surrounding her father to leave, but when she finally stepped back, Loke removing his claw from her, she felt surprisingly stronger for it. She wiped at her eyes with her free hand, remembering the book gripped tightly with the other. She smiled down at it, holding it close to her chest.

“You know, it was books like this one, books where she made the worlds come alive and seem so interesting, that made me want to be an adventurer in the first place”

No longer hugging her he sat up, tilting his head down at her inquisitively .

“Really. Hearing stories of far off lands, of all the strange and wonderful beings that inhabit them, all the amazing landmarks to see, made me want to leave. Not like I hated it there with them of course, but the child in me wanted excitement,I still do. She nurtured that wish and helped it grow. She was going to teach me so much about surviving on my own..and then he almost snuffed that feeling out of me” He huffed in response, becoming less and less impressed with her father by the minute, she quickly changed topics. “It’s funny to think though, that this book helped lead me on the path to you, without those dreams of wild adventure, would I have ever left?”

He hummed in thought, gaze dropping to the book in her hands. He eventually smiled at her, a big toothy grin.

“Then Lucy was right, a very valuable book. It belongs in the hoard, I would love to hear Lucy read them sometime”

He was being so soft with her, it was cute of him but would a dragon be interested in children's stories? It would probably bore him to pieces. 

“Y-you would?”

“Yes! I want to share in Lucy’s memories! Plus maybe it will make Lucy want to go on an adventure with me?”

Ah there it was, his not so hidden motivations. She couldn’t help but feel a little smug as she crossed her arms, grinning up at him.

“You want to go on an adventure with me? Just the two of us?”

He nodded enthusiastically at her, clawing the ground in his excitement.

“I want to explore with you, I want to be part of your happiness Lucy”

He was so adorable, being so unabashedly happy at the mere thought of spending time with her, of going somewhere with her. If she was honest, she really wanted to go somewhere with him too.

“You are a part of my happiness Loke. I’ll keep my eye out and if I find a job we might be able to do together then I'll take it. It’ll be fun to work with you” She caught her smile widening as the idea planted itself in her head and wouldn’t leave. “In fact, I really like that idea, I think it'll be really fun!”

His tail thumping loudly against the cavern floor proclaimed his joy, not that the excitement in his eyes didn’t say it clearly enough.

“Right! Super fun! We could find a treasure! One that is ours, no one else's! I want to find something important together! Haven’t been on an adventure in long time!”

“You haven’t?”

“No, try to be very careful. But it’s very boring. Could risk going somewhere with Lucy, it would be great!”

She wasn’t so sure about that, there were genuine reasons why he kept out of sight after all, but if they were careful it should be fine.

“Then we will! Starting tomorrow i’ll keep a eye on the jobs board, who knows, maybe i’ll find one soon”

“Maybe tomorrow?”

She hated to let him down, it was like kicking a puppy, but she wasn’t sure how likely that was.

“Maybe? We’ll have to see, there might not be anything appropriate for us to take”

He hummed in acknowledgement, not exactly thrilled with that reality. It’s not like she was either, but they had to be realistic, it could be weeks before they actually had an adventure opportunity. It was an annoying prospect, but the fact was most jobs would get him caught and neither of them wanted that.

Desperate to change topics, and wanting to get that moping pout off his face, she held up her bag for him. 

“On another note, could you take these to Capricorn and Taurus? They’re gifts for them”

He sniffed the bag, frowning down his nose at it.

“Gifts? Why?”

“Why? Well Capricorns helping you speak English isn’t he? You’ve come along leaps and bounds by the way, I’m super proud of you” Predictably, his frown melted away into a proud grin, standing straight to puff up his chest and show off for her. She rolled her eyes, keeping in her giggles, before continuing. “I figured he deserved something for his efforts. He said he collects human literature, so I went around town looking for different genres, I hope he doesn’t have them”

“He’d accept and appreciate them anyway, he’s very kind”

“I know but I don’t want him to have duplicates. Then I realised I had gotten you, Aries and Capricorn a gift, but I was ignoring Taurus. I figured he was the type of dragon to come knocking to whine on and on if he thought he was being left out. So, I got him a wall calendar”

That seemed to throw him off guard, almost stumbling forward as he looked to the bag again. 

“A calendar? I am right in thinking that you mean that paper thing humans use to tell the date?”

“Yes, that’s right! Some calendars do have themed pictures though, to make it more interesting. I get the feeling he’ll enjoy the ones in that calendar”

“Really? Why?”

And there was the question she’d been dreading. She sighed, remembering the strange look she’d received from buying a… certain type of calendar. But it couldn’t be helped, it was what he liked, though whether she should be encouraging it was another matter entirely. 

“...You know, it doesn’t matter, could you just go and give these to them”

“But Lucy-”

“Nope, I am not having this kind of conversation with you, ask Taurus and i’m sure he’ll be happy to explain”

He cringed at the idea, lip curling in his upset at the sheer idea of asking that of Taurus.

“If Lucy is saying that, then I don’t want to know, I don’t even want to look at it”

“Probably for the best to be honest”

He groaned, shaking his head and muttering something in his language, probably complaining about how much Taurus confused him, before reluctantly taking the bag from her.

“I’ll take them, I hope it doesn’t encourage more trouble”

“It shouldn’t….right? I mean Capricorn’s incredibly reasonable”

He shrugged and stood up. He took a moment to arch his back and stretch out his wings, flapping them slightly to get them ready for flying. 

“Dragons appreciate possessions, appreciate gifts. I worry you’re going to end up with a lot of loyal dragons”

“And that’s a problem?” 

He once more shrugged, unsure. He started walking away to the entrance, trying not to look at her. She ran after him, slightly bemused.

“You’re not afraid of losing time with me are you?”

“No!...Maybe...yes...but a lot of dragons united together for one thing can be great or a lot of trouble. They’re not all like Capricorn, could cause Lucy grief”

“I’ll deal with that if it comes, but I’m not trying to earn loyalty or shields or weapons or whatever. I just want friends, I treat Fairytail with this same kindness. I’m not going to treat dragons with less respect than humans”

“I didn’t think you would, but that respect is different for dragons.”

“Right...tell me if i’m ever going too far won't you? I understand human etiquette just fine but I need a better grasp on dragon manners, I don’t want to cross any lines”

“I will, gifts as a thank you are fine. Lucy’s right Taurus would be childish if he was left out, just don’t do it all the time. If you shower all dragons with human affection you could cause non-understandings”

“You mean misunderstandings?”

He pouted and huffed, annoyed he got the word wrong.

“Yes,  _ misun _ derstandings, ok Lucy?”

“Ok...have a safe journey Loke”

“I will Lucy, see you soon. Be back to read the book!”

He finally took off, powerful wings easily lifting him up into the sky. She watched him, his warning playing over in her mind. It seemed she still had far to go before she truly understood Loke and the other dragons, maybe she could ask Capricorn for some lessons of her own.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not sure how many events of the actual manga/anime I should try to fit into this AU, if any. What do you guys think?


	15. Locked horns

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lucy asks about those lessons, but first has to deal with a little spiff.

The chance to talk to Capricorn about a potential lesson came much quicker then she ever thought it would.

Loke had just left to hunt, leaving her in charge of their home when there was a large crash outside. She paused, panicking for a brief moment, before rushing to get her whip. No one was going to invade this cavern while she was here to protect it. She was inwardly debating the merits of rushing out vs lying in wait, when a very familiar dragon charged in. His head swivelled around, before his eyes landed on her, causing him to beam down at her.

“Why hello there lady Lucy! I see you’re as sexy as ever!”

He sauntered easily over to her while she lowered her whip, brain trying to understand what she was seeing.

“Taurus ?”

“That’s me! Happy to see me? Perhaps you even missed me?”

He winked down at her and she groaned, shoulders slumping, she wasn’t in the right mood for this today. Still, he was trying to be friendly in his own unique way, best to see what he wanted.

“What are you even doing here?”

“Do I need a reason to visit someone as sexy as you?” At her responding glare he laughed, loud and boisterous. “Well if you must know I’m here for you!”

“...What?”

“Taurus! Don’t run off! And don’t confuse the poor lady!” 

She was surprised by a ruffled Capricorn slowly making his way in, looking incredibly unsure. What were these two doing together?

“What’s got you so skittish you old goat?”

He finally made it to them, glaring harshly at Taurus.

“I’m not that much older than you and you know it! Besides this isn’t our cave, it’s not right to enter another's home while they’re not there. I feel like we're being incredibly rude”

Seeing them side by side, the way they held themselves was completely different. Capricorn was tall and proud, back straight despite his uncertainty. Taurus was larger but he was more slumped, relaxed, so he lost some of his size advantage.It made it even more confusing as to why they were here, especially together, when they were so different.

“It doesn’t matter, the lady of the house is here so it’s fine. We’re allowed in right?”

“If I get a straight answer from one of you then yes”  
“Like I said, we’re here for you-”

He was interrupted by a smack upside the head from Capricorn’s wing. He grumbled to himself as finally Capricorn, the sensible one, took control of the conversation.

“We’re here to say thank you for our gifts. I was going to come alone but caught him planning someting stupid so I felt it was for the best I accompanied him.”

“Something stupid?”

At the accusation Taurus huffed, puffing out his chest in indignation.

“Well my original pan, before Mr Spoilsport over here ruined it, was to really surprise you! I was gonna swoop down while you were walking home or something, say hi, then take you to my place! I wanted to show you that I've taken all the pages out and put them all over my walls. I thought it was the best way to show I appreciate your gift”

She stared up at him, unable to speak and more than a little shocked at his stupidity. Why in the world did he seem so proud of himself? Her brain finally rebooted and she was able to respond.

“You’re an idiot”

Perhaps a little too blunt, but she felt it adequately got her point across.

“What?! Why?”

“Because I don’t like getting taken away to somewhere I’ve neve been on the whims of someone I don’t see that often. But even if I didn’t mind a surprise trip to your house, and I wouldn’t if the offer was presented in the right circumstances, you still have to contend with Loke. In your scenario he would have likely been waiting for me to come home. If I come home really late he'll think I'm in trouble and might come looking for me. If he then finds you whisked me away without even giving him some notice then he will be angry, and we both know how that would go.”

He huffed, not impressed with her answer.

“I’ll admit I should ask you first if you want to come with me, that’s a given, but don’t you think Loke’s being a bit too possessive if he doesn’t let you go anywhere?”

“For starters I can go wherever I want. Secondly, It’s not being possessive, it's showing you care. I usually come home before nightfall, I hate travelling through that forest in the darkness, it kinda scares me. If I’m going to be later or if i’m staying in Magnolia or even if I have a job that’s going to be a few days, I let him know first so that he doesn’t worry. If it’s pitch black outside and I’m not home when I said I would be, he has every right to wonder if somethings the matter. He’s not about to come rampaging out to come find me but he’ll definitely be more alert”

“I suppose. Man you’re both big spoilsports, I just wanted you to have some fun”

“I worry what your type of fun entails”

“Well since you’re asking-”

He was once more disrupted by Capricorn, who knocked against him a little to shut him up. He then pulled a bag off his shoulder and dumped it in front of her. It opened up to reveal more stationary together then she’d ever seen in her life. There were enough notepads, pens, pencils, etc, to keep her writing for the rest of her life. She stared up at him, trying to hold back an eager grin.

“For me?”

“Yes, Leo told me you wanted to pen a novel of your own? Well I’m always for encouraging more works of art, so I thought these would be useful to you. Please accept them as my thanks. It was my original attention to give these to you before _ he _interfered”

“I’m not sure I like your tone there goat breath”

“Excuse you?!”

The squabble drowned out into the background as she got a proper look into the bag. There was some seriously expensive stuff in there, he’d somehow gotten his claws onto some real collectors items and high end items. She picked up a fountain pen at random to examine it. The shiny, gold barrel of the pen had an intricate floral inspired design lovingly crafted into it, it almost seemed a shame to write with it. She got the feeling she’d feel guilty writing with a lot of the pens in that bag, he’d gone a bit overboard for her. That seemed a common theme among dragons.

She was pulled from her musings by a loud crash. She quickly glanced up to see Taurus stomping his foot, getting riled up at the other, eerily calm, dragon. Despite his gentlemanly posture, it was clear he knew how to get under the other’s scales.

“You think you’re so much better than me, don’t you?!”

“No, I just think you should act like the noble creature you are instead of some petulant child. You’re a dragon, you should have some decency”

“Oh yeah? Well maybe you should lighten up a little and stop being such a prude”

They finally fully faced each other, glaring daggers at one another. Capricorn retorted, changing language to their own, his tone sharp and prickly. Taurus’s eyes widened for a brief moment, before responding back in the same. Their volley sounded harsh, forming tension in the air around them as they slowly got closer to each other, fangs bared and ready to strike. Strangely, she didn’t feel any fear as she ran between them, just the need to stop them fighting.

“Stop fighting, please, you don’t need to!”

They either couldn’t hear her or were ignoring her as their thunderous voices continued arguing. Either way, that wouldn’t stand with her. She took in a deep breath, so she could yell as loud as she was able.

“STOP!”

The two dragons startled away from each other, surprised such a small being could make such a racket. Taurus recovered first, snarling at her.

“Listen up little lady, he’s trying to police my fun, I am allowed to defend myself, don’t butt in”

She was about to try and calm him down when Capricorn hissed, unimpressed by the attack on a lady.

“You say it’s just fun but that’s your excuse to be vile, there was no need to snap at Ms Lucy like that, you’re not an animal!”

“Please stop, you don’t need to fight, especially not over something like this”

“But Lucy, the way he treats others is just-”

She lifted her hand, catching his attention and cutting him off. She did her best to smile softly at him, even as the weight of the situation was finally hitting her. If she didn’t tread carefully there could be a brawl and blood would be spilled if she got caught up in it, either hers, or theirs when Loke returned to see her injured. If she did manage to get away, she really didn’t want to tidy up the mess they’d cause.

“I understand, his carefree attitude rubs you the wrong way. You don’t care for his perceived lack of manners or respect. I can understand that and why you try to correct his behaviour, you see dragons as creatures who should set an example on how to act right?”

“Right, we’ve lived long enough to understand this world, so we should teach others how important it is to plan things through and how to act. His impulsive nature is completely against how dragons should be”

“If all dragons are supposed to be as stuffy as you then i’m glad i’m nothing like other dragons. Life is made to be lived, spread your wings, make stupid choices, have fun. That’s the point of it all and I embrace it”

“And that’s absolutely fine”

He looked down at her, clearly surprised she’d agreed with him, well it wasn't like she was taking sides here, as her personality probably laid somewhere between there's. She had thrown away a lot of her ladylike behaviour but also wasn’t about to go running completely wild and free. She preferred the happy medium to going to extremes. 

“Yes, having a relaxed attitude to life isn't necessarily a bad thing, I'm sure it makes you incredibly happy and helps you to live a near stress free life. The only issues are that you don’t mind winding up others for your own amusement and that you don’t seem to quite understand what counts as acceptable behaviour. Still, you toe the line as closely as you can but you never cross it, which is admirable, if not a little annoying...no more than a little annoying.”

She sighed even as he chuckled at her, appeased slightly by her understanding. He relaxed slightly, wings folding to rst against his back once more. She hadn’t even noticed they’d both raised them, a bit too focused on their fangs.

“See? I’m not a completely bad guy Capri”

“That’s a strange thing to say Lucy. If I recall correctly, Leo informed me he tried to snatch you away when you first met.”

“True, which is why I keep my distance, he doesn’t get physical, or really any kin of, affection from me. I will make sure he’s aware that those introductory actions have consequences and will hurt our friendship until he makes it absolutely clear he won’t touch me again without permission, so far he’s doing fine. I am aware he’s a dragon, but basic instincts aren’t really an excuse. Though I do wonder if he was really trying to make off with me in the first place...or if he was just trying to upset Loke”

The dragon in question looked away, doing his best not to catch her eye. So she’d hit the nail on the head huh? He’d really just wanted a fight with Loke, maybe he enjoyed scrapping? He’d get along well with Natsu.

“How do you know that? You are incredibly sexy, definitely a worthy addition to my hoard. What makes you think I wasn’t acting solely with that in mind?”

“Because you could have easily gotten away through, or hidden in, one of the many tunnels behind us, I’m not sure Loke would have found it easy to follow you. Before Capricorn came you could have snatched me right there and then, you could have fought him off, you seem pretty strong. You didn’t act like a dragon obsessed with his hoard, you put me down when Loke asked...no you were a dragon using me to tease others” She huffed as she folded her arms. “I don’t really appreciate that Taurus, so I’m still going to keep away from you”

”Fair”

“So you’re saying I should forgive his behaviour?”

“Not if you don’t want to, I can see how you would both find the other obnoxious, but you can exist together without fighting. That might be too tall an order to do all the time but while you’re here can you not fight? Please? You are friends right? I’m sure you’d help the other if they were in trouble at least”

“...Yea I guess I’d save the old man from tripping and breaking his hip”

He snorted, chuckling at his joke, not noticing, or not caring about, Capricorn’s slowly raising wings as he once more got ready to fight.

“I think you mean I would drag you out of whatever trouble you landed yourself in”

“Ahem!”

Her foot taped the floor impatiently as she glared up at them. To her pleasant surprise, after a tense moment, they both relented to her.

“Fine, I would help him out I guess”

“Right, it wouldn’t do to leave a fellow dragon in peril”

“Good! Keep your fighting away from this cave and we’ll all get along swimmingly. Sit away from each other if you need to”

Capricorn dutifully nodded, turning around to stride over to the wall behind him before sitting down, tail curled in front of him.

“I agree to your terms Lucy, but perhaps you should stay closer to me in case he leaps on you”

“Hey now I’m no beast...besides I apologised for that”

He huffed, looking for all the world like a bull about to charge.

“You did and I appreciated that...but please go over there, I don’t want to have to split you both up again”

“Alright, alright’ I’m going.” Despite his words he grinned at her, before strolling over to the other wall, slumping down and stretching as he laid against the cavern wall. “It’s enough for me to be able to watch your sexy body from here”

She sighed, that was probably the best she was going to get for now, she could roll with it.

“Alright, so what’s next?”

Before they cold answer a loud thud outside signified Loke had returned. She could feel all the tension flow out of her in relief, they could be his problem now.

“Lucy I’m home! I-...What are they doing here?”

“Rude, can’t a dude chill at his friend’s place?”

He stayed laying down, hardly bothered by Loke’s appearance. Capricorn was more respectful, standing up to welcome his friend.

‘We are here uninvited, but we wanted to thank Miss Lucy for her gifts.”

“After they did that I invited them in, is that alright?”

His gaze slowly went from one to the other, almost like he was expecting something.

“Lucy can have whatever she wants as a guest, I’m just surprised, no fighting?”

Was this a common occurrence? Did they really fight that often to justify Loke being suspicious of this fragile peace? They both seemed a little awkward under his gaze. 

“They did snap at each other a little, but I laid down the law, you don’t need to worry. They’ll be no fighting in this home while I’m here”

He titled his head in confusion, large eyes widening in shock.

“Lucy stepped in between them? What about the danger? These two always argue, so different to each other. Different opinions. It’s ok as long as others aren't dragged in. Don’t get dragged in”

He plodded over to nuzzle her, allowing her to hug his snout. A small wine escaped him, filled with worry.

“I’m fine Loke, I just don’t like the idea of them making a mess”

He snorted, the air blowing into her. Despite his worry, she could feel him starting to smile.

“I’m impressed Lucy, not many could stop fighting dragons, or know enough to try in the first place”

His easy praise would have normally made her smile, however she was actually reminded of a burning question she had wanted to ask Capricorn and internally scolded herself for forgetting so easily.

“Well really, I don’t know enough about dragons. I’m lucky that these two respect me enough to hear me out, or respect you enough to not eat me”

“I wouldn’t eat you, you’re a friend of Leo’s and hopefully a friend of mine”

“Argument or not, I’m not going to squash such a beautiful woman.’

“...Thank you? Capricorn, since we’re friends, can I ask you a favour?”

“Of course”

“Can you teach me about dragons? About your culture and rules? I don’t want to cross any lines with you and other dragons that I meet, I don’t want to cause trouble”

His eyes lit up in a way she hadn’t expected from someone so prim and proper. He looked ready to charge over in his excitement, before a small hiss from Loke immediately calmed him down. He remembers himself, instead slowly walking over. She stepped back from Loke, ignoring his responding whine, to glare at him.

“He’s allowed to be happy that I want to learn from him”

“Lesson one Lucy, don’t let other dragons be near you when over excited, not all have my control, could hurt Lucy”

What control? He’s constantly at her feet begging for attention. She got the point though, be careful and don’t get stepped on.

“I would be happy to teach her all about us Leo, you are free to supervise if you like?”

He paused, weighing up his choices before nodding.

“If Lucy wants to learn, I will help”

“I can help teach her too”

“No”

The response was so flat, he hadn’t even looked at Taurus, she couldn't help her small giggles.

“Well at least I make her laugh I suppose” 

“Hmm, I suppose you have that going for you. Now Miss Lucy, we can start those lessons anytime you like, just get Leo to come fetch me and I’ll be right over. Taurus could learn a thing or two about our history too.”

“That’s a hard pass”

Putting her hand out to start the potential fight before it happened, she caught his attention.

“Thank you, I’ll do my best to be a good student”

“I know you will Lucy, you’re such a good human”

“And you're going to make me blush. Still, thank you for giving up your time for me, I look forward to it”

“I look forward to being welcomed back by Lucy"

Cheeky dragon, we have guests!” Despite her words she beamed up at him, she bet she looked soft with all the affection she had for her silly idiot. “Welcome home, I’m glad you got back safe”

Pleased by finally getting the attention he wanted, he grinned toothily at her, tail gently swaying behind him. Though this piqued some curiosity.

“Where were you Leo? I was under the impression you try to be here every second she is”

He nodded in response, not even trying to deny how needy he was.

“I do try, but I did need food, I went to go eat, then I came racing back”

“...You didn’t bring any back for Lucy?”

The cogs were whirling in all of their heads, Taurus and Capricorn coming to the same wrong conclusion, much to Loke’s dismay.

“Dude, you’re not starving her are you?”

“That would be rather cruel old fiend, I can not agree to such actions”

“W-what?! No, never! I would never starve Lucy! Lucy ate with human friends today!”

“Did you not think to ask her if she wanted a snack?! A true dragon thinks of others”

“Yeah, i don't care for the stuffy way he said it, but Lucy should get what she wants!”

It was kinda funny, seeing these two fierce frenemies become strong allies, standing together to tower over Loke. Huh, who knew? They could cooperate on something after all. She got the feeling Capricorn was about to go into a rant about how true dragons behaved, strangely backed by Taurus. 

As amusing as that would be, she should probably explain she had a large dinner with her team and wasn’t particularly hungry. So while she easily stood in front of them, scaring the life out of Loke for her ‘brashness’, she got the feeling these two weren’t so hopeless after all.

That and the feeling her lessons were going to be incredibly interesting.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Taurus and Capricorn don't really interact in the series, but I get the feeling that's probably for the best, they definitely have very different opinions on how to talk to Lucy for a start!


	16. We're on our way

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lucy finally finds a job for her and her dragon, it's time to set off!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for being soo paitient with this one, it ended up so much longer then I intended, but I hope you enjoy!

She was practically running up the path, dodging tree branches and stones to get to their cave as quickly as possible. She almost tripped a few times but managed to get home relatively unscathed. She bent over, panting from running as far as she did, leaning against a rocky wall to breathe in deep gulps of oxygen, heart hammering in her chest. She was feeling gross and exhausted but it was worth it, she needed to tell him the good news! The immediate reminder refilled her with new energy, manic grin starting to hurt her cheeks.

“Loke! I’m back! I need to talk to you!”

She made her way deeper in the cavern, amused when she finally spotted him. He had clearly been taking a morning nap, if the way he was blinking blearily at her was any indication. He yawned, showing off all his teeth as he stretched out his arms. He arched his back, wings stretching upward as he slowly woke up his body. He gently stood on all four legs, rolling his shoulders before tiredly smiling down at her.

“Hey Lucy, sorry I wasn’t awake, I didn’t expect you back this fast”

That was understandable, the sun really wasn’t even halfway through the sky yet, it was strange on a normal day for her to be back, but this wasn’t a normal day.

“That’s ok! I really wanted to tell you this now!”

She’d caught his interest, though arguably he was always interested in what she had to say.

“What did you want to talk to me about Lucy?”

“I found a job we might be able to do!”

He straightened up, definitely awake now, before he quickly lowered his head, his snout quickly in front of her, eyes wide and hopeful. His voice may have been a little higher than normal when he spoke.

“A job? For us?! We can go on an adventure?!”

She held up the job notice for him eagerly, excited at the prospect of sharing it with him, before belatedly realising he couldn’t read such small writing, Capricorn hadn’t shown him how to do that. Embarrassed at her own childlike behaviour she turned it around to look at it. 

“Have you heard of The Golden Suncup Desert? The Suncup desert for short? It’s quite far east, but I’m pretty sure with your wings we’d get there pretty quickly.”

His pupils looked up and became unfocused as he did his best to remember.

“I think Scorpio mentioned it…”

“Scorpio?”

“A fellow Celestial dragon, Lucy might meet him one day. I believe he used to live out there before he joined our group”

Her train of thought had completely derailed. She knew dragons could withstand the elements, but living in a desert? With the intense heat, lack of water and blistering sandstorms? That was a strong willed dragon for sure, she wanted to ask him how he did it.

“How? That’s incredibly impressive, did the dry atmosphere not bother him?”

“Apparently he liked burying himself in the sand and just laying in the sun. He described it as ‘a cool warmth’, which was confusing when I first heard it”

A different type of cool, easy confusion, but still...he liked to bury himself in hot sand? He sounded insane. Still, probably a very interesting dragon to meet.

“I’d like to meet him. But anyway there’s a rumour going around that there’s a hidden treasure in the desert. The job is to try and find information about it and to bring something back if we can. We’ll be rewarded if we can prove one way or the other if it exists or not. How does that sound? There won’t be all that many people in the desert right?”

He hummed, frowning a little before sighing. 

“I don’t really like the hot weather, but let’s go. I want to go on an adventure with Lucy and I won’t get spotted out there. We should prepare first, bring lots of water and food”

“I know that, I can go into town and get a backpack and supplies. I’m glad my new wardrobe consists of mainly lighter clothes, though I’m probably going to overheat anyway.”

“Deserts get really cold at night Lucy, those type clothes are fine during the day, but bring something to wrap up in at night. I won’t let you freeze. Also Lucy needs better shoes, find some proper boots, ones to help trek through sand and protective things like scarves to block out the sand and-”

She held up her hand, cutting him off.

“I get it, I’ve got a lot of shopping to do. If I get all the proper safety gear, will you go on this job with me?”

“Yes! I’ll go with Lucy!” At that moment, it seemed to properly hit him what they were talking about. “I...I’m going on an adventure with Lucy”

She smiled up at him, pleased and touched by the awe in his voice, the clear joy at the idea of going with her.

“Yes, yes you are”

He let out a loud yell of triumph before nuzzling her, his yelling turning into rushed murmurs. It was a wave of affection and she knew it was best to just ride it out. She held his snout, petting him and scratching under his chin. He finally calmed down, slightly leaning his head against her.

“We’re going on a journey, I can’t wait!”

“We’ll go tonight, that way less people are likely to spot us, it will be safer for us. First though, I need to go shopping, I’m gonna need a checklist”

“I will be happy to carry Lucy if she gets tired on our trip and I will protect from the sand and the heat, I won’t fail”

She patted him on the nose before backing off, allowing him to stand straight again, though he looked like he missed the close contact. He always seemed a little sadder after the cuddles were over.

“I know you won’t, but I still shouldn’t be unprepared for anything this could throw at us, I’ll be back as quickly as possible, I want to rest here all day so I have the energy to stay up with you tonight”

“...I should go back to sleep, have a lot of flying to do”

“Yeah...I’ll grab food in town, don’t forget to feed yourself ok?”

“Ok, I’ll go eat first”

“Good boy, see you soon”

Satisfied he was going to properly look after himself while she was gone, she gave him a short wave, beaming at him as he excitedly waved back. It was going to be hard to convince him to nap now, she could see the energy flowing through him, giving him a buzz and causing him to twitch slightly as he fought to hold himself back. He clearly wasn’t able to for long though, since as she walked away she could hear his yells of joy and celebration. To hear him cheer like that, all because he got to spend time with her, well it made her feel all warm and fuzzy inside.

The backpack ended up coming in handy to carry all her travel supplies, she appreciated the practice of carrying something that heavy with her as she walked. A forest was a different environment to a desert of course, but she gained a feel for the kind of weight she would be trekking with her and that was appreciated. She’d filled it with anything she could think of; A compass, several canteens of water, some rope, a scarf to protect her face, sunscreen, a book on the desert and some food. After a quick reminder from Loke she stuffed a coat and gloves in there too. Satisfied she’d packed well enough for their trip, if she hadn’t well she hoped her dragon could pull her out of stupid situations, she’d moved onto her clothes. 

She’d read up in her book about what to wear, so a trip to several stores supplied her with more stable boots and thick socks, a long sleeved white shirt and a jacket to protect her from the sandstorms. She had to forgo her usual skirt for light pants, which was a shame, but it was better to be prepared in this case. With that all ready and given her dragon’s approval, she’d fallen asleep by his side, determined to rest up for the night's adventures.

She may have been too determined to sleep, since it took Loke nudging her roughly to wake her up. Perhaps all her adventures with Fairytail were tiring her out more than she thought? Regardless, with Loke’s constant whining in her ear, she got up quickly and raced to get ready. Donned in her new clothes, backpack, boots, hat and scarf, she felt a little overdressed for what was going to be a hot place.

“You sure we haven’t overprepared Loke?”

“For the desert? No such thing. I can fly Lucy away if it gets too much, but if we’re deep in the desert, that could take time. I don’t want Lucy getting ill during that. Anything that gives extra time is important”

He could understand his concern, she wasn’t ready to die of heatstroke just yet. Still, didn’t the same apply to him?

“What about you?”

“I know of a large lake along the way, deep in a forest clearing. We’ll stop off there, I’ll have my fill of water then I’ll be fine. The desert heat doesn’t bother me as much as humans. Worse comes to worse we leave then return, though I would like to do this job in one trip.”

Yeah she could understand that, going back and forth in and out of the desert didn’t sound fun, especially if they had only a minimal chance to restock. This was all a little extreme, but it wasn’t like they could take normal jobs together, Loke wouldn’t be able to wander into any town without causing mass panic. If they wanted to go on an adventure together, it had to be a little wild. The anticipation, mixed with fear, was starting to swell up inside her, win or lose, they were doing this together. That alone was worth celebrating.

“Then we best get moving hadn’t we? You ready to go?”

“Yes I am! Let’s get moving!”

He crouched down low, allowing her to climb up onto his back. She felt his scales moving underneath her, it gave her a feeling of security. It was hard to feel scared while riding on the back of a dragon. Once she was secure he stood up, picking up her backpack and placing it beside her. She held onto it, but didn’t really need to put it on just yet. She patted his back and he took that as a sign that she was ready. His large wings spread out, ready to fly , as he padded over to the cave entrance. It was something else entirely to see them from this angle, to properly see his muscles moving under his scales. They could easily clear them through anything and the thought relaxed her.

“Are you ready Lucy? I’m going to take off”

“Ready when you are Loke, let’s go!”

With a loud roar, a signal to start their adventure, he shot up, wings flapping powerfully to get his body off the ground. The wind swept around her, biting into her and almost blowing her away, but she held on until he finally straightened out high over the forest. She gave herself a moment to calm down from the adrenaline suddenly pounding through her veins. She took deep breaths, focusing on the feeling of him moving through the sky beneath her, before finally looking up.

It was breathtaking.

The night sky was clear so all the stars had come out to play that night. They were so close it felt like they surrounded her, that she could reach out and touch them. Their light shone down on the scenery below, bathing the earth in softer shades, chasing away the darkness. To see them from this new angle, this new altitude, it was amazing. It felt like home, it was so beautiful, she could see why there were such majestic beings dedicated to the stars. The dragons and celestial bodies both, were so humbling to be in the presence of.

“It’s a lovely night isn’t it Loke?”

He looked up, humming to himself. She was a little startled that he kept flying forward while he wasn’t paying attention, but she supposed the odds of them crashing into something was rather slim. 

“It is good tonight Lucy. It makes me feel small seeing them”

It made him feel small?! How was she supposed to feel? Tiny?! Still, she could understand feeling insignificant compared to seeing the universe above you, knowing there were countless stars up there.

“Yeah…” They were silent for a moment, just appreciating the world around them. “Win or lose, it was worth the trip to see this with you. We should really just go flying together more often. I know it’s hard because you need to stay hidden, but the few times I’ve been on your back have been like nothing I’ve ever experienced”

“Lucy...I will try to find a place we can fly in private. I enjoying flying together too”

“It won’t be too tiring for you?”

“Nope! In fact, I’m looking forward to it, let’s fly lots together, I want to spend that time with Lucy”

“I want to spend that time with you too, I focus a lot on my human friends, only seeing you at the end of most days. I wonder if we should have the whole weekend together, like we used to before I became a regular at Fairytail. We could spend a Saturday as a fly day or something”

“Yes!” She wobbled a little as he flapped his wings a little too hard in his excitement. “Back to two days with Lucy! Get to fly together too, they will be the best days!”

He sped up in his joy, cutting across the night sky. She bet if you looked up he would look stunning. Though maybe all you would see is a moving constellation, stars somehow seeming alive. What an interesting view that would be. She hoped they didn’t seriously confuse anyone watching the stars as they made their way across Fiore.

As promised, a half hour or so into their journey, he stopped off over a serene clearing. Inside that clearing was a large lake, peaceful and undisturbed by humans. Once he landed he crouched down to allow her to slide off him. She was grateful for the consideration, the ability to stretch her legs and have a small walk before the long haul part of their journey. The calm before the storm she supped.

He slowly made his way over to the lake, seeming uncertain about something. Probably his fear of water. He stretched his neck out so he could drink while keeping his body as far away from the water's edge as possible. It was a pathetic sight, one that made her quietly giggle to herself, but as long as he was actually hydrated it was fine. After he drank his fill he looked down into the water, eyes searching for something in the deep. Curious, she made her way beside him, trying to see what he was looking at. After an unsuccessful scan of the lake, she turned to face him instead.

“Is something in there?”

He seemed to snap out of something, startled, before facing her.

“No, not right now. I’m really glad, I didn’t want to get into trouble.”

“Not now? Is there a land animal that lives there?”

“No, but there is something that visits. There’s a tunnel near the bottom. It connects many bodies of water.”

“A tunnel? Under the lake? Does that often happen naturally?”

He frowned down at his reflection, thoughtful about something.

“Natural probably the wrong word”

“A man made tunnel?

“No….I-”

He froze mid sentence. His head pricked up as he sniffed the air, sensing something she couldn’t feel, it left her a little lost.

“Loke? Are you-”

“Shhh, stay quiet, we could get into trouble”

He guided her into the brush, hiding deep into the greenery. They were going to have to hope the shadows hid them well enough to not be spotted, to help them he laid down, lowering himself against the ground. To say she was nervous was an understatement, what could possibly be so terrifying as to freak out Loke this way?

She got her answer soon enough as she started to hear a rhythmic thumping, signalling that something large and heavy was moving towards the clearing. Nature moved aside to allow a dragon to step through into the clearing.

She pointed to him, mouthing to Loke to ask if that was the trouble he was worried about, but became immediately confused when he shook his head. She turned back to face him, straining to get a proper look at them in the poor light.

They seemed to be a dark crimson, but perhaps that was the shadows darkening their colour. Their wings were folded at the moment, but seemed to be red with grey ridges. As they moved closer she had to hold back a gasp. The scales on this dragon were completely different to what she had seen before. They looked more like armour plates, moving together as one to give him a hard outer defence, almost like a protective shell. It’s tail curled up, the hardened plates continued all the way up it, ending in a sharpened point at the tip of his tail. It looked so sharp that it would likely pierce another dragon’s scales with ease. It paused by the lake, sniffing around, eyes scanning the brush where they were. As it’s eyes locked onto where she was hiding she felt herself instinctively hold her breath. Just when she thought it was going to come over, it shrugged, seemingly losing interest in whatever the new scent was.

It turned to face the water before letting out a soft howl. She didn’t think dragons could be soft, but this one was clearly calling out for something, sounding almost tender in the request. It stood firm, waiting for a response and she felt a small part of her worry that it wouldn’t get one, it would be sad to see a dragon refused, to see them moping or lonely. Thankfully she didn’t have to see that, for it wasn’t long before there was ripple on the water, starting small before becoming large ripples that crossed the length of the lake. The tension rose until finally a large spiral of water shot out of the lake. 

She watched in awe as something moved in the centre of the spiral, she caught the movement but couldn’t quite see what it was, it seemed translucent, flowing with the water with ease. Once it had reached the top the spiral collapsed outward, revealing a new dragon in a spectacular flourish. This new dragon had the moon behind them which shone off their scales and filled her with awe. She wasn’t the only one, the other dragon was captivated by the water dragon, any thought of others completely forgotten.

This new dragon seemed to be a deep cerulean, she was smaller than the others, more streamlined, perhaps for better swimming. Their wings were thinner and lighter than the others.They weren’t as rigid either, she could have sworn they were made of water not scales, they were practically see through if not for the stars underneath, but no less breathtaking as they hovered there in the sky. Their scales were smaller than the others, reminding her more of fish scales than a dragon’s, especially on the tail. Their tail was thick at the base but became thinner as it got closer to the tip and was covered in those small scales, it was topped off with what looked like small fins? She wasn’t sure at this distance. Was a mermaid dragon possible? Because it seemed to be what she was looking at.

After it’s marvellous display it gently landed beside the other dragon, speaking softly in their language. It sounded very feminine and the reply was quite masculine, so based on that and their body types she hesitantly labelled the armoured dragon as male, while the water dragon was a female, she hoped she was right anyway. Their tone seemed adoring as they greeted one another, before they slowly nuzzled their muzzles together. The male kept chirping as she padded forward to rub up against him, shamelessly showing her affection.

She blushed as she looked away, suddenly feeling like she was watching something private. She was amused, if not a bit concerned, by the sight of Loke pressing himself even further into the ground, shaking slightly as he tried his best not to be seen. Confused she pointed at the new dragon and he slightly nodded, terrified of moving too much. She turned back to the pair, they were now standing side by side and nuzzling each other as she cuddled up under his wing. She was what scared him? This delicate, loving dragon? Well that was weird. 

They slowly walked away together, chatting in their language, his tail loosely curled around hers, a sign of gentle affection that wouldn’t harm her. She waited until they were completely out of sight, until she could no longer hear them, before she tentatively got up. Seeing that nothing was happening, she felt confident that she was safe, only to be snatched up by Loke as he shot into the sky like a bullet. 

There was a minute of crazy flying as he sped to get them away, before he finally calmed down, slowing down to his normal casual speed and finally placing her on his back alongside her bag. She was thankful he’d remembered it, since she’d forgotten all about it in the craziness. Speaking of all that…

“What was that Loke?”

“Scorpio and Aquarius. Aquarius was the one that flew out of the water”

“Wait, that armoured one was Scorpio?! The one who loves the desert?! We could have asked him for clues”

She could hear his pout more than see it, knowing he was upset by that response.

“That’s cheating Lucy, we need to solve this on our own, it’s our job! Besides, he was visiting Aquarius.”

“That was quite the showy entrance she had, does she love the water or something?”

“Yes, she lives in the sea but has spent time making tunnels to other lakes. She’s strange, prefers to swim than fly, says the feel of water on her scales is soothing. But her love for Scorpio is even stronger than that, so she comes onto land to visit him”

“Wait, one loves the ocean and one loves the desert yet they love each other? How does that work?”

“Through a lot of compromise. Love is strange, it’s not my story to say, but they used to mistrust each other, until a big event happened and they fell in love. Scorpio moved from his desert home to be closer to her. He lives in a large underground cavern filled with sand. He’s sad about not having the extreme heat but apparently life without sand would drive him crazy, so he moved a bunch to his new home. The desert won’t miss it, has too much already”

“He’d go crazy? Is sand his hoard?”

He snorted, almost a laugh.

“No, something more precious than that”

“Oh...Loke, why were you so scared?”

“Well, Aquarius claimed that lake as hers. I can drink from it if she’s not there, but if I had interrupted alone time with Scorpio then…”

She felt him shudder underneath her, genuinely upset by the apparent consequences that would have brought. It again confused her, would it have really been so bad?

“What could she have done? She seemed really cute”

He did laugh at that point, loud and teasing.

“Never call her that. Also pretend when she visits that you’ve never seen her before, it’s for the best, trust me. The only things I truly fear is certain humans and Aquarius’s wrath, that dragon is scary”

She’d have to take his word for it, despite how unlikely it sounded.

“You’re afraid of water too”

“And why do you think that is?”

That threw her for a loop, Aquarius was clearly at home in the water, had she gotten so angry at Loke she’d used it against him? Why would she do that? And to what extent had the damage been? A bad feeling slowly made its way into her gut, perhaps it was best that she delayed their proper meeting for as long as possible.

As the sun slowly rose up into the sky, the ground below them started to get cracked and solid from dehydration. As they went on there were less and less obvious signs of life, the plentiful greenery fading into dusty, yellow sand. She could feel the heat slowly start to rise, knowing that when the sun was fully up she was going to start suffering. He stopped before flying a little higher to give her a vast view of the desert in all its dry glory. 

“Here we are Lucy! Welcome to the Golden Suncup desert!”


	17. The scalding desert

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Man I don't know what was wrong with me, for the longest time I had such an authors block for this story. I've had to force my way through it and I fear it shows in this chapter. It's really weird cause I enjoy writing for this. I hope you enjoy anyway.

She stood in awe at the vast expanse of sand that stretched out in front of her, her throat getting dry just looking at it all. How difficult this was actually going to be started to finally sink in. Some distance away there seemed to be a small town, apparently fighting against the surrounding desert to carve out a living.

“Is that town real or a mirage?”

“It’s real, I wanted to check on it”

“Why?”

He didn’t respond, looking out at the town, scrutinising it. He frowned after a minute, muttering to himself

“They seem ok, but we should check later-” He paused, as if he just realised how bad an idea that was. “-Or maybe just Lucy check”

“Yeah that’s probably for the best, now let’s get moving before they notice you, I’m surprised they haven’t already”

He nodded at her, turning away as they walked deeper into the dessert, away from the small town and away from their sight. It was nice to know that there was a small haven out here though, a place to restock and rest if she needed it. Though she wasn’t sure what they’d do if it was Loke who needed something, he claimed to be fine but she couldn’t help the nagging worry that plagued her mind with images of heat stroke or exhaustion. She’d just have to keep one eye on him, he’d die before he told her he was actually in real danger.

“So, how do you think we should do this? Mindless exploration definitely isn’t the way to go here, the client did give us that copy of the tablet he found. It’s just figuring out what is meant by that. However, even if we do find something suspicious, we can't say for certain that it’s what we want and we can't waste days here."

“I could fly over and look for anything strange”

“A flyover is a good start, but let’s get further away first, I’m really not comfortable with you flying anywhere close to a settlement. There's also no point in you getting caught if it's just hidden deep in the sand anyway.”

He hummed in agreement, continuing a slow plod across the hot sand. She tried to stay alongside him, but the sun bearing down on her was something she’d never experienced before. Natsu’s flames couldn’t compare to how sweltering it was. She knew it was cheeky but she slowed and moved so that she was underneath him, taking shade and protection from his large body. He peaked down at her, a little confused.

“Sorry, It’s just too hot for me, do you mind if I use you as shade?”

“I can carry Lucy, protect from the heat with my wings!”

She shook her head, determined to do this herself. 

“I want to go as far as I can by myself Loke, I want to prove I can do this with my own power”

A small huff of air escaped his nose as he frowned down at her.

“Fine, but don’t get ill”

“I won’t” She took the moment of shade to properly take in the rolling hills of sand, to assess the scenery around her. Taking note of the potential higher ground, she pointed upward. “We should go there”

He followed her finger, almost gawping at the high hill of sand. It would be no problem for him, but his concern for her was easily read on his face.

“Want to climb upwards, in this heat? Lucy’s brain is already melted I think”

It was her turn to be upset with him, not appreciating his skepticism. He could stand to believe in her abilities just a little more, desert or not. She stepped forward, stubbornly moving towards her goal. He fumbled, moving with her just to keep her shaded and protected. He could be incredibly angry at her, but that could never prevent his seemingly natural instinct to keep her as safe as possible. Though that instinct wouldn’t stop his grumbling, so she had to put up with that as they made their way over. 

She’d almost tell him he was right about the steep climb, if it wasn’t for the fact he’d be all smug about it. Something about walking in the sand made gravity even more against her than normal, like every step was being weighed down. The sand was getting increasingly more annoying to walk on, but she persevered, trudging through the thick sand until they reached the top of the hill. The view was much better from her, she could see the town far off to her right, starting to wake up in the desert sun. Noticing the new hustle and bustle she made Loke leave her to hide down the other side, ignoring his whining as he did so. They were lucky they hadn’t been caught yet, she wasn’t going to chance it. He really needed to sort out his priorities, she could go without shade if it meant he wasn’t spotted.

She sighed, taking a long hard look at the dry scenery around her, trying to spot anything of interest, even the smallest thing out of place. It all looked the same to her, dust and sand blowing lightly through the air and covering the land as far as the eye could see, she was going to need a clue to help her. Slightly frustrated with the situation, she lugged the bag off of her shoulders and dumped it into the sand in front of her. She rummaged inside until she found the job information. The basic request was there plus some extra information that interested her. There was a riddle that apparently revealed the location of the treasure, though the client had been very reluctant to admit where they’d gotten the tablet from, only giving her a paper copy of the translation. That had really alerted the suspicious part in her and while she was currently playing along, she was glad she’d brought Loke for protection. The riddle itself had apparently been loosely translated from an ancient language, loosely being the key word and apparently it had taken a long time just to get this shaky clue. But it was all she had to work with so she re-read it:

_ Five hops away from a sleepy desert town _

_ A vast collection of treasure may be found. _

_ A majestic scorpion shines the way in the night  _

_ Just watch out for the tail’s bite. _

Apparently the original riddle hadn’t rhymed and they had taken some liberties with the translation to make it so, all that told her was her client had the flare for the dramatics. Though that wasn’t the only thing that concerned her.

“I really hope I don’t have to get stung by a scorpion to open the door to this treasure, otherwise i’m off this job”

He hummed, tilting his head in confusion.

“That is extreme. Perhaps it’s a…is it a metaphor?”

“Yeah that’s the word you want, good job” He preened under her praise as she thought it over. “Yeah it’s most likely not literal, perhaps there’s a statue of a scorpion in the vicinity that shows where it is?”

“Maybe? But why would a statue light up?”

“Magic maybe?...I dunno, how about we work out what the first part means. If it was really only five jumps away by human standards then it would have been spotted immediately, so it must mean something else”

“I could hop!”

He sounded so excited that he caught her full attention, and she almost yelled when she spotted his joyful form. She had to rush down to him, almost tripping and rolling down the hill as she stumbled in the deep sand, as he tried to crouch into a leap. She held onto his leg, trying not to scream in the sudden burst of frustration she was now feeling.

“No! Idiot you can’t hop! As cute as that would be, don’t you think it’ll attract some attention?!”

He paused, unsure if he should stand, not convinced that it wasn’t worth it.

“But won’t it help?”

“Even if by some miracle it means five dragon jumps, you really shouldn’t actually do it. We don’t need those townspeople rushing out to hunt us down. We’ll figure something else out”

He hummed and nodded, signalling his reluctant approval. A sigh in relief escaped her as she moved to the side, allowing him to stand, though he still didn’t seem entirely thrilled by the idea.

“Wanted some fun Lucy”

“I know you did, you can jump around our cavern all you want when you get home ok?”

“...Ok”

Appeased he looked back to the left, where the view of the village was obscured by the sand, before lolling his head to the right, eyebrows furrowed in thought. His head moved up and down as he eyed the sand, murmuring under his breath. She gave him a moment to do whatever he was doing before speaking up, curiosity slowly starting to consume her.

“What are you doing?”

“Jumping in my mind”

Oh of course, because that made- No wait, that did make some vague sense, if they assumed that it wasn’t a proper translation then it could actually be a long distance, who knows how long five of them could be? What if it was meant to be five metres? No that was still way too close, kilometers? 

So puzzled about the first part of the damned riddle that she didn’t notice Loke wasn’t with her until she turned to ask his opinion and found him gone. Panic struck her still for the second time in ten minutes, he was going to give her a heart attack! In her new fear it took her a moment to spot him, even though she was looking straight at him. He was far off, plodding along the sand in a determined line. She made to yell his name before freezing, concerned someone would hear her. Who could possibly hear her this early in the morning? Well she didn’t want to find out. 

She grumbled under her breath as she threw the bag back over her shoulder and ran after him. The heat was really starting to burn down on her now and she could have really used him not getting away from her, she was going to have words with him. She eventually caught up to him, panting as she did so. But not because of her own speed but because he’d stopped, putting his nose to the ground. She couldn’t believe him.

“Y-you think...you can catch their scent? The one who hid the treasure?”

He stopped sniffing to nod at her.

“How? It could be anyone or anything, the scent might not even be there anymore”

“Have...a guess”

“You do? Wow you’re good at solving riddles”

He shook his head in response before nudging her.

“Lucy is smarter than me. I just have special knowledge, dragon stuff. That helps me have a guess, though I believe I’m right”

“Oh. Then whose treasure is this?”

“A surprise Lucy! Though may want to talk to job giver if I’m right”

She frowned, confused at the sudden change of topic and frustrated that he was keeping things from her, perhaps this was more of a game to him. 

“Why?”

He let out a small growl as he started to move forward.

“He should never have had it, he stole it”

“What?! How do you know that?”

He ignored her, nostril flaring as he put his annoyance into finding whatever scent he was looking for. She got a sense she wouldn’t get much of an answer unless he was proven right, it was just a working theory of his at the moment after all. She trusted his judgement though, he was her friend and though he could be silly, when he was serious he was incredibly reliable. If he had an idea, even if it was wrong, it was better than anything she had right now, it was best to just go with it. 

“So what’s the plan Loke?”

“Go round the town, same distance away, until I find the scent”

All the way around the town?! At such a far distance? That could take all day if they were going the wrong way and it was right behind them. She couldn't stop herself letting out a small groan as she reluctantly followed him, watching as he slowly tracked along the sand. He was being incredibly careful, somehow not inhaling the dust and sand as he sniffed along the desert. This was going to take some time, she pulled up her scarf as she walked, preparing herself for the sandstorms ahead. This definitely wasn’t going to be a fun trek, but she’d taken this jovb knowing that, it was time to prove she could survive in this environment.

As they slowly trudged along she attempted multiple times to start a conversation, but all she got in response were grunts or curt responses as he tried to focus, so she quickly got tired of that and she was starting to worry she was really annoying him anyway. It left her with nothing to do but watch the same scenery around her, ever hot and unchanging. The sun beat down on her but she dared not ask Loke for a wing to shelter her, it would just be a bother for him. Instead she kept a constant eye on the direction of the town, moving them further back if they were starting to move into a clearer view, though he grumbled at her and scrambled to get back onto the right path at the first oppurtunity. It wasted time, constantly convincing him to deviate, but it needed to be done to protect him, so she’d argue under that biurning sun for as long as she needed to. That stupid sun started to slowly yget to her, she had nothing to do but keep vigilant and feel the warmth on her skin, neither were great but the way the heat sapped her energy was worse. As the time passed it became obvious to her she needed a break and that upset her. All the jobs she’d done and she couldn’t hold on because of some simple weather? Well she knew it wasn’t simple weather but still! Stubbonly she pressed on and on, walking beside him until her legs started to shake, until she couldn’t keep up anymore, until she fell to her knees, sand scratching at her skin, desperate for a break. For a terrifying moment she worried he was going to leave her there, but it was like he had a sixth sense for her pain. The moment she dropped he looked up, turning his head to ask her what was wrong and tripping into panic himself when she wasn’t right beside him. He plowed over to her chittering and babbling in his fear as he looked her over. Once she’d convinced him she was fine, that she just needed a rest, he’d scolded her, reminding her that he didn’t mind stopping for her and that it was no bother to him. Her pride had taken a harsh sting but she appreciated the chance to sit down under the shade of his wing, eating and drinking some of her supplies to help energise her. 

After that they went even slower as Loke demanded hourly breaks, refusing to allow her to overwork herself. He was constantly whining about sunstroke or dehydration and made sure she always had a water bottle in her hand. She hated being treated like a small child, but he knew this better than her, so followed his advice, lest she gave him an actual reason to be scared for her. Her pride wasn’t worth that. 

Her pride wasn’t the only thing that hurt though when he finally let out a small yell of triumph. They’d been walking all day and even with breaks her body was starting to protest working in such an hostile environment. She was going to have to work out a training regime to help tackle extreme temperatures, if for no reason other than to stop her feeling so pathetic compared to her dragon.

She sat down heavily in the sand as he continued his joyful chittering. He broke away from the circle they had been creating, walking further outward. She watched him for a few minutes, wondering if she should follow him, when his wings suddenly shot up, he'd found something! He let out a short cry before his sharp claws dug into the sand. His tail wagged excitedly behind him as a hole started to form, though the sand quickly started to fill it up again. He whined as the sand refused to work for him, grumbling under his breath. She took this as her cue to go over to him, on tired and weary legs she stumbled over to him, backpack feeling heavy on her back.

“What are you doing?”

“Underneath, look!”

He dug again, fighting rapidly against the dry sand. She stared at the hole and gasped in surprise when there seemed to be yellow stone underneath.

“You’re right something is there!”

He stopped, panting slightly and out of breath. He slumped, wings falling as he watched the sand refill the hole he just made. He hissed softly, frustrated with the situation.

“What can we do?”

“Well, the sand on top of this thing clearly wasn’t there before right? The riddle made it seem like it should be easy to spot. So I’m guessing it’s not that deep. It'll take the rest of the day I bet, but we could slowly dig it out, moving all the sand elsewhere. It doesn’t matter so much if the sand trickles onto the edges, but we definitely want to excavate the centre of it.”

“That sounds like a lot of digging”

“Unfortunately, yeah it’s going to be”

He groaned beside her and she couldn’t help but agree. It wasn’t like they had professional tools to do this with either. Well technically her dragon could act like a digger, but neither of them had the exact know how to do this efficiently, they would just have to clear it out little by little. She rolled up her sleeves, determined to help him this time, she wouldn’t just be a burden to him. 

“Let’s get started, It’ll go faster if we do it together”

“Yeah, with Lucy helping it’ll be easy!”

She wished she could join in his enthusiasm, however forced it was, but the long labour ahead of her did not look fun. She sighed, taking in a deep breath before nodding, it was time to get to work. 

They worked from the centre outwards, digging out sand and tossing it away, Loke was much better than her at that, as he scooped sand into his large hands and moved it behind him, sometimes chucking it if he couldn’t be bothered to move and dump it. They worked on opposite sides of the hole they were making, fighting against the sand that seemed desperate to remove any progress they made, but, little by little, the resistance started to ease up. As the day moved into the afternoon and the sun started to disappear, they had made real progress. The middle was fully removed of sand, it had a border of sand around it, but they were too exhausted to fully clean the thing, especially when they could get a good look at it already. There was no need to be perfectionists.

She collapsed onto the sand, Loke laying beside her, completely tuckered out as he took in deep breaths, muttering to himself about never getting up again. She shook her head and looked at the large stone door in the sand that they hand uncovered. Well it seemed to be a door, there was a thin opening down the middle, suggesting that it did open up, but neither of them were in the position to try forcing it open. It seemed to be made of solid stone, shining yellow in the fading light. Inscribed on it was the large image of a scorpion, positioned like it was ready to attack. In its tail was a strange see-through gem, probably what the second part of the riddle meant, if she could get her fog filled brain to remember it. She was way too tired for this. She joined Loke in laying down, relaxing in the sand as she did her best to work up enough energy to get some food and water into her, she’d need it for later. As she rested, she heard Loke whisper the other thing bugging her mind. 

“Ok...now how do we open it?


	18. Treasures galore

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lucy and Loke work to get the door open, but what will they find inside?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This little journey of theres was only meant to be a chapter, maybe two. What is going on with how long it's becoming?

The question plagued her even as she finally ate once more, finishing off her first water bottle too. How were they going to open such a giant door? She got the feeling that forcing it was completely off the table, even with them slowly regaining their strength. The answer probably resided in the riddle but she'd be damned if her fog filled brain could work it out. She was too tired now, even with the dawning sun cooling the air. She shivered, zipping up her jacket. She was glad she had taken Loke's advice, she didn't want to imagine what it would have been like in her normal shirt and skirt, she'd have been freezing in the desert of all places!

"I guess we're staying the night huh Loke?"

"Mmmm, seems so. When Lucy wants to sleep please tell me, sleep up against me and stay warm. My wings will also keep away the sand and wind, it can be awful if it gets in the eyes."

She smiled softly, encouraged by his presence and promise to keep her safe.

"I think I'll take you up on that offer, thank you. But for now I want to try and figure out how to get this stupid door open. I won't sleep otherwise, no matter how comfortable you make it."

It would stick in her mind, taunting her throughout the night and driving her crazy. No, she had to solve this now. Her eyes roved over the stone door, inspecting every inch, but only the gem caught her eye. It was a strange clear stone, see through and unfamiliar. She was positive she'd never seen anything quite like it, not even in one of Loke's hauls. So it was probably pretty rare and maybe the sting the riddle was referring to. She stood up, catching her dragon's gaze and interest, and walked around to the gem, peering into it and trying to find some answers. The riddle had mentioned the tail and its bite, which had led her to predictably think of poison. If they had to pour a potent poison onto the gem then they were out of luck. She wasn't even sure how you precured scorpion poison and didn't want to know either. She had to keep thinking and hope that wasn't the solution.

She kneeled down to get a closer look at the gem. It was set into the stone pretty firmly, her attempts to push it down or take it out achieved nothing. Her fiddling did reveal that there was something underneath it though. She could see a mechanism hidden below through the gem but couldn't make out any firm details. The loss of light didn't help matters. Thankfully, she had a solution for that.

"Loke, could you come here for a second? I have a theory I want to test out"

He happily stood up for her, raring to help. He stretched outward, class digging into the sand, reminding her of a cat, before plodding over.

"What does Lucy need me to do?"

"It's this gem. There's something under it but I can't see it properly in this light. Would you light it up for me?"

In retrospect that was a bad word choice, especially for an eager dragon who was all too happy to help. He gently tapped her with his claw, edging her backwards. The fact he was moving her away should have told her something, but it wasn’t until she saw the power flowing to him that she realised what he was doing and at that point, it was much too late. She stepped hastily backwards as light built up in his mouth. He concentrated on the gem and a thin beam of light shot straight towards it. For a slight moment she panicked that the power would destroy it but that sorry was blown away instantly. It seemed to absorb the light, shining brilliantly for a few moments before fading away. It had caught both of them off guard, they both stared stunned at the gem, before there was a short, harsh buzzing noise coming from inside the door. A minute of waiting revealed nothing, there was a rush of air beside her as her dragon huffed indignantly.

"Nothing happened Lucy. The door is broken, it is really old."

Was it? No, that didn't seem right.

"There was a noise so I think something happened. I think it was a sign that we were doing something wrong. Maybe light is the answer but that was the wrong type of light?”

“What do you mean? What other type of light does it need?”

That was the million jewel question wasn’t it? What other types of light were there? Dragon light could probably be categorised as their own unique light, it was made of their own magic after all. So there was still electrical light like torches, or maybe it was more a fire based light? Fire did chase away scorpions...it scared away most animals actually. Though making one might prove to be a bit of a challenge and that kind of light would be hard for the gem to absorb anyway. She hummed as she looked around, trying to find some inspiration, some sort of clue as to what she needed to do.

She sighed as she looked up to the darkening sky, hoping for some divine inspiration, trying to ignore how cute Loke was being by copying her. She watched the stars slowly start to appear, trying to figure out-

_ Wait a minute! _

Something that had bothered her this whole time was how long the tablet had been held onto. Why wait this long to put out a job? Unless they had already guessed at the true meaning and knew it had to be done now. Was she just being played with? Were they worried about traps perhaps? So they were hoping for a naive guild member to just charge in and check it out for them? How rude! She’d be having words with them when she got back.

“Loke, what constellation is dominating the night sky at the moment?”

“Hm? Lucy should know this, looks a lot in those books”

“I do, but I want to be certain I’m right. I’m following a hunch on how to open this door”

“Oh! Then It’s Scorpio. We should be able to see it above us soon!”

It couldn’t be that simple, but it would also explain why it hadn’t been found until now if it needed a certain star’s light to open, the sand covering might have even prevented it from opening before this. Was it possible that it was created with the intention of being found immediately? She was suddenly a lot more invested in Loke’s ‘the tablet was stolen’ theory, the townspeople couldn’t find what they didn’t know was out there and if they had no reason to explore out into the desert behind them why would they?

"I think Loke...we just need to wait a little longer”

“...I think so too”

She figured he’d soon tell her why he already had such a strong feeling about what they were looking at, when whatever hunch he had was confirmed. Well that was fine, she could wait and she trusted him enough to know he was taking this as seriously as she was. She sat on the sand by the door, staring up at the sky, Loke plopped beside her, the excitement and tension starting to rise between them.

“What do you think will happen?”

“A cool door opening! Maybe a light show or something!”

“If there was a light show wouldn’t it have been spotted before?”

He let out a small whine, dreams of some sort of desert light spectacle crushed before they could bloom, couldn’t he just be satisfied with an ancient door opening up? Though she wouldn’t mind a fanfare as it opened it wasn’t plausible, otherwise it would have been spotted even without the tablet. Still, she could join Loke in his fantasising about a giant ceremony.

“I wouldn’t mind if it was multicoloured lights”

“Like a bright rainbow across the sky, it’d be so pretty”

“Right, and grand music”

“Super loud and amazing! The kind that blows you away!”

“Exactly! It’d make the day feel worth it anyway. All that turmoil and we are rewarded with this brilliant gesture, this huge congratulations on solving the riddle”

“It was worth it to spend the day with you Lucy! To work together with you on a real adventure! To be able to complete a job was a dream come true.”

On the stars themselves he was too cute for his own good, the way he turned his head to beam at her. She couldn’t help the smile that answered him.

“Despite the way my body aches, I enjoyed coming out here with you too. We really need to explore the world together more”

“We do! We can go everywhere together!”

“Well, anywhere that isn’t crowded with people, but I look forward to it”

He laid his head on the sand, humming with delight. If it wasn’t for the fact it would whip up the sand he’d have been shaking his tail wildly she bet. Even in his overbearing joy he was considerate of her, it was sweet. She was interrupted in her joy by a soft light coming from the gem. She looked up, frantically searching until she spotted Scorpio above them in all it’s Celestial glory, shining down on them, on the door.

“Loke! Something’s happening”

They both watched in awe as the gem shone, turning yellow and lighting up the door. The scorpion itself seemed to glow, the starlight now thrumming underneath the stone door making its eyes brim with life. There was a small click before the ground underneath her started to rumble. Loke chirped in alarm before picking her up and scrambling backwards as the sand started falling and pouring into the opening door. The two sides pulled backwards, disappearing into the sand, creating a large opening big enough for Loke to fit in. She peaked over Loke’s claws, holding onto his hand so she didn’t fall off. She could see large, makeshift stairs leading down into the dark. The doors stopped, the rumbles calmed under his feet, he waited a moment before tentatively putting her down, unsure if it was safe for her now. Despite his trepidation she was excited, this was it. This was what they’d come for, what they had needed to find, they were doing this!

“Let’s go Loke! We have to see what’s down there”

“Wait a second Lucy, you’ll trip if you just run down there! Let me light the way for you”

She’d swear he was more like a concerned parent than a dragon but she patiently waited as he created a few balls of light, sending them down to illuminate the path in front of them. The sheer amount he created might have been overkill but it was much harder for her to miss a step now that was for sure. Now that he was appeased he nodded at her, allowing her to lead the charge downward, into new and unexplored territory. Her pace sped up as the anticipation of what they would find pulsed through her, brimming her with joy and pushing her forward. She raced down, hearing alarmed mumbling from Loke as he tried to keep up with her without accidentally squishing her, desperate to not let her get too far ahead or to lose sight of her. She swore he thought the monsters in his imagination would grab her the moment she strayed away from him. 

She finally made it to the bottom stepping off into a vast round cavern, filled to the brim with treasures she’d never seen before. Marble statues of legendary heroes decorated the outer layer while gems of varying sizes and colours, coins and artifacts pilled in the middle. Golden goblets, rings and jeweled boxes littered around the edges, the room shone with wealth. On a small pillar in front of the pile was a dark blue ball, sitting on a cushion. On the pillar there was an inscription that caught her eye, she slowly edged closer, a watchful eye making sure there were actually no traps, before trying to read it. Unfortunately for her it seemed to be in the same language that the tablet was, an old native language long since changed by time and culture. She frowned at it, upset that it gave her no clues as to who this magnificent haul belonged to. In the corner of her eye she spotted her dragons pupils dilate as he stared at the treasure, completely prepared to keep them for all eternity so he could sort out what he wanted. He edged ever closer to the pile, only pausing when she ran in front of him. 

“Loke! Loke snap out of it!”

“It’s so shiny though!”

“I know it is, but it’s not for us. It’s going to someone else, remember we’re on a job?”

He stared at her, then behind her. The treasure seemed to be calling him as he did his best to scot around her, this was going to take drastic measures.

“Touch anything and I’ll never go on a job with you again! We need to be responsible!”

He paused, frozen for a tense minute, before glancing at her with tear filled eyes, a soft whine escaping him. 

“Lucy doesn’t want to have an adventure with me anymore?”

“I do, but this isn’t ours”

He sighed, wings drooping as his head lowered in shame.

“Yeah, Scorpio would be pretty mad if I stole this stuff”

Wait… Scorpio as in the dragon Scorpio?! Her stomach dropped as fear struck her and held her in place.

“Wait...this isn’t his hoard is it?”

He straightened as he gasped at her, surprised, before chuckling in amusement. She huffed, not amused that he was taking this as a big joke.

“No, this isn't his hoard. It’s his gift to the village out there”

She looked up at him, confused and a little bit annoyed that he’d left out such an important detail.

“His gift? Do you mind maybe explaining a bit more, that’s a bit vague”

He shifted, uncomfortable, before sitting down, prepared for a long explanation. 

“He should be the one to explain this but… Around here is where Scorpio lived, I’ve told you that. But what I didn’t say was that he took a particular liking for that village and the humans in it. They respected the desert like he did and so he learned to respect them. At first he just helped lost travellers find their way back. But they started leaving precious things out as a thanks to their guardian. And by precious, I mean to the human. That’s his hoard, it’s filled with everything from money to teddy bears to fine quilts to a well polished teapot. He’s very proud of it. But anyway, his love for the village grew with every thoughtful gift and so he started to protect them from sandstorms and attacks, in secret.”

“Of course...but then he had to leave?”

“Yes, but he couldn’t just go, he had truly grown to care for these humans. So he left them all of this and dropped the instructions to get here outside of the town” He frowned harshly at the wall. “He’d been so relieved that he left this town a chance to flourish but instead...it seems the tablet ended up in the wrong hands, a traveller perhaps. A greedy thief. Whatever happened, this should have been found by the townspeople, that’s what he wanted”

“So either it was passed through the family or sold off for money as a mysterious artifact, swapping hands until a vague translation finally ended up with us?”

“Seems so”

She crossed her arms, incredibly angry that apparently people thought she could just be tricked and messed around with. This had just been one big ploy to make themselves richer and have her be the scapegoat if anything went wrong. Well unfortunately for them, she had a dragon on her side. 

“Ok, well what we’re going to do is return all of this to where it’s meant to be, then I’m going to return to Magnolia and make sure it’s clear we found nothing”

“What if he doesn’t believe?”

“Then we’ll make it clear there’s nothing here. Worse comes to worse a good scare might be what’s best. Besides no ones going to believe one man”

“...Lucy’s upset?”

“Aren’t you?! He tried to steal a gift from your family!”

He tilted his head, curious as he sized her up, sized up her motives.

“Of course, but I thought this was a dragon matter. It’s Scorpio he’s stealing from after all.”

“Well anything that’s important to you is important to me. Now, how do we move all of this? We’ve got to take it back to the village, we have to carry out Scorpio’s wish”

He nodded at her, stretching out his wings before moving to the stairs.

“Wait here for me, I will be as quick as possible, I will not allow Lucy to be locked in here, but I need to get something large enough to carry this, or at least help me move it in chunks...Yeah I’m going to be making several trips aren’t I?”

His eyes scanned the large pile of extravagance and sighed. He stomped out, muttering under his breath about how over the top his friends were. Considering his size and speed he’d probably find something pretty quickly, it shouldn’t take too long for him to come back, at least she hoped it wouldn’t take him the hours of darkness they had, which were starting to feel so few. She’d have to run otherwise, she really didn’t want to test how much oxygen was in here. She’d just have to amuse herself until he returned, though she got the feeling a tour wouldn’t really last all that long.

While she took a quick mental stock of the situation, trying to come up with convincing enough lies that will stop any curious travellers coming back here, her interest returned to the blue ball on the pillar. Weary about a random ball in the middle of all of this, but still wanting to satisfy her innate curiosity, she quietly stepped over to it, suddenly worried it could hear her. She slowly reached out for it and gently picked it up and brought it closer for inspection. 

She was a little disappointed when after a few seconds nothing happened, that it was just a blue hollow ball, when it suddenly started to hum. She was startled so much she almost dropped it, needing to quickly re catch it after tossing it upward, before watching with fascination as small white dots started to gleam on the surface of the ball. Closer inspection revealed them to be small stars. With slight hesitation, she tapped one.

Blue light shot out of the orb in a wave, flooding the entire area and changing it to a darker shade. Constellations started to litter the room as a miniature universe filled it, taking her breath away with its sheer majesty. She walked through the map of the stars, trying her best to find every constellation she could recognise, subconsiousely mouthing their names when she spotted them. There was so much beyond what she knew, so many unknown stars, countless tiny lights. She absently sat down, happy to just stare and watch them all float by, it was surprisingly relaxing. She allowed herself to finally have some rest, surrounded by their galaxy, as she absently thought on what the plan was going forward.

His return some while later pulled her out of her calm reverie, it was so easy to be relaxed when she could feel everything coming together, taking in the celestial view around her. She heard a small whistle of appreciation from him as he took it all in.

“What’s this Lucy?”

“This ball Loke. I think it has magical properties, all I did was hold it and yet this happened. It’s so stunning to look at that I kinda lost myself there.”

"I can understand that, if I could fly through I would feel so peaceful, I would forget everything that troubled me"

"You have troubles?"

"Many. Now where should I put this? I found the largest piece of cloth I could! And some rope! That’s a bag right? How much should we put in? I’m ready to take multiple trips”

Well, wasn't he talkative today? Though if he thought she missed the subject change he’d be sorely mistaken, he was just lucky they were on a time limit. Besides she had another problem to deal with. He laid down a roll of cloth, dropping the coil of rope beside it. She’d been expecting an actual bag, though she didn’t want to diminish his efforts.

“If we roll the cloth out completely, we can make a large makeshift bag by filling the middle with treasure and then pulling it up from the four corners and tying it shut. We should get a bit in that way. Also I’ve been thinking, we should only do one trip”

He paused in his work, having automatically started working on her instructions.

“What do you mean?”

“Well, I’m a little worried about how much time we actually have before those doors close again. I don’t know if it’s when the suns in the sky or when the stars start to fade or when the sky is even a little bit lighter. As much as I love you Loke, I don’t want to be trapped in here all day with you.”

“Makes sense, so what should we do?”

“We need to be strategic about this. So I think the plan should be that we fill one bag as much as we can, you get it as close to the city as possible under what darkness we have left then I’ll catch their attention and hopefully hand it over to whoever's in charge. We could have made a ton of small bags too I guess but again I’m worried about time and multiple trips would have meant either leaving the money there unguarded or me and the money just outside the gate. I like neither of those options”

“I want to be nearby, incase thieves try to hurt Lucy”

“Exactly! So let’s get started, we’re losing precious seconds”

They got to work, sorting out a mixture of different treasures to place on the cloth, deciding a variety might be more convincing than just coins. They unfortunately couldn’t take any of the marble statues, but she was satisfied with their choice of jewels, money and treasures. It took Loke some time to work out how to properly knot the bag under her instruction, but after a few attempts he managed it. What they were left with was a large cloth bag filled with enough shiny objects to make anyone rich for life. She was proud of their efforts but knew she would be cursing them later, she was going to need a cart to pull this into town, her back ached at the mere thought of more manual labour. 

As she hopped onto Loke’s back, she held the small Celestial ball to her chest. She’d grown attached to it and a small selfish part of her hoped she could keep it.


End file.
